Delhi minister Raaj Kumar Anand on Wednesday resigned from his post along with Aam Aadmi Party's primary membership, citing his dissatisfaction over the party's policy on corruption, a clear reference to the liquor policy case in which key leaders, including Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his former deputy Manish Sisodia are arrested.
Raaj Kumar Anand is an MLA from Patel Nagar area and was Minister of Social Welfare and SC/ST in the Kejriwal-led Delhi Cabinet.
Soon after resigning from his post, Anand said he did so as he could not connect his name with the ongoing 'corruption'.
"Aam Aadmi Party was born to fight corruption but today the party is stuck in a swamp of corruption. It has become difficult for me to work on the minister's post. I resigned from the post of minister and from the party as I can't connect my name with this corruption," Anand said.
"From the Jantar Mantar, Arvind Kejriwal had said that the country will change once the politics changes. The politics hasn't changed, but the politician has changed," he added.
Furthermore, Anand also alleged that the Dalits did not have adequate representation in the party. He claimed that Dalit MLAs, ministers or councillors of the AAP were not given any respect.
"I became a minister to pay back the society. I don't want to be part of a party that takes a backseat when Dalit representation is talked about. I am not joining any party," he said.
"We have 13 Rajya Sabha MPs, but none of them are Dalit, women or from backward classes. There is no respect for Dalit MLAs, councillors and ministers in this party. In such a situation, all Dalits feel cheated. Due to all this, it is difficult for me to remain in this party," Anand added.
Notably, even Anand's name appeared in a customs-linked money laundering case by the Enforcement Directorate last year, following which his house was searched by probe agency sleuths.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has filed a complaint with a local court, accusing individuals of making false declarations in imports, leading to customs evasion amounting to over Rs 7 crore and international hawala transactions. Subsequently, the Enforcement Directorate lodged a complaint against Anand in connection with the case.
Meanwhile, AAP leader Sanjay Singh alleged that the BJP was behind Raaj Kumar Anand's decision to quit AAP.
"BJP is using central agencies such as ED and CBI to break our ministers and MLAs. It's a test for AAP ministers and MLAs, Singh said.
