Arvind Kejriwal Says Will Resign As Delhi CM In Two Days

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said he would be resigning from his post in the next two days, and would not return to the chief ministerial chair till the public decides on his honesty.

"I am going to resign after two days. I will go among the people and ask them whether I am honest or not. Till they respond with their verdict, I would not sit on the CM's chair," Kejriwal said, while addressing a gathering of Aam Aadmi Party workers and supporters in the national capital.

"There will be elections in Delhi in the next few months. If you think I'm corrupt then don't vote for me. If you think I'm honest, then vote for me. Each and every vote will be a certificate of my honesty. If you vote and make me win, only then I will return as the chief minister," he said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party, which is the AAP's main rival in Delhi, called Kejriwal's decision to step down as a publicity stunt. "This is a PR stunt. He has understood that his image among the people of Delhi is not of an honest leader but of a corrupt leader," BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari said, while speaking to news agency ANI.

Notably, Kejriwal's announcement to resign comes two days after he was granted bail by the Supreme Court in the Delhi liquor policy case. The AAP supremo was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21, but was granted a temporary bail by the top court in May in view of the general elections.

Kejriwal had to surrender again on June 2, after the polling for the Lok Sabha elections ended. The apex court had rejected his request for an interim bail until July.

Subsequently, the Central Bureau of Investigation, too, arrested Kejriwal on June 26. Thereafter, the top court granted interim bail to Kejriwal on July 12, but since he was in the CBI's custody, he remained behind the bars.

The liquor policy case pertains to accusations of corruption and money laundering during the formulation and implementation of the Delhi government's excise policy in 2021–22, which was later scrapped. The case led to the arrest of Manish Sisodia, the former deputy chief minister, in February last year. AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh also faced arrest in October.

The case also led to BRS leader K Kavitha's arrest in March. Following Kavitha's arrest, the ED released a press note calling Kejriwal a conspirator in the alleged liquor policy scam.

According to Kejriwal, the action taken against him by the central probing agencies was "aimed at breaking the AAP" and ousting his government in Delhi. He claimed that he did not resign after being jailed as he "wanted to fail their formula of putting chief ministers behind the bars to destabilise the state governments".

Notably, the tenure of the Delhi Assembly is scheduled to expire in February 2025. The last assembly elections were held in the national capital in February 2020, in which the AAP had retained power by winning 62 out of the 70 seats.