New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for reportedly fighting defamation suits filed against him by using public money.
The BJP asked why the public should pay for Kejriwal's "karma" (deeds)?
"Defamation cases are personal cases against Kejriwal, not against the Chief Minister of Delhi. Hence, Kejriwal should fight these cases with personal money, not public money," Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said here.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in 2015 had filed a defamation suit against Kejriwal ,who alleged irregularities in Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) during the chairmanship of Jaitley.
"Kejriwal is habitual of defaming people. It is his 'karma'. Why should public pay for his 'karma'?" Javadekar asked.
"Today he his paying the lawyer's fee from public exchequer. Tomorrow if the court convicts him, will he pay all the liability from the public exchequer?" he asked.
"And there are seven defamation cases against him as far as I know. This may total up to (Rs.) 100 crore. Will he make the people of Delhi pay those 100 crore?" the BJP leader asked.
Calling this a "dacoity" on public money, Javadekar said Kejriwal's action were "illegal and immoral" and would not be accepted.
The BJP's attack came in the wake of a TV channel report saying that Kejriwal's lawyer Ram Jethmalani sent him a bill of around Rs 3.4 crore for appearing in the court in a defamation suit filed by Jaitley.