Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday sacked his Social Welfare, Women & Child Minister Sandeep Kumar after receiving an ‘objectionable’ CD in which he was purportedly shown in a compromising position with a woman.
The decision to remove the 36-year-old Minister was taken at a high-level meeting attended by top AAP leaders and the announcement was made by Kejriwal himself through a tweet. “Received ‘objectionable’ CD of Minister Sandeep Kr. AAP stands for propriety in public life. That can’t be compromised. Removing him from Cabinet wid immediate effect,” Kejriwal tweeted.
“The CD came to us half-an-hour back. We saw the CD and took the decision to sack him immediately. The AAP has zero tolerance for crime and corruption,” Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia told reporters on Wednesday night.
Kumar represents Sultanpur Majra constituency. He is the second AAP Minister to be sacked after Asim Ahmed Khan who was Minister for Food and Supplies.
Sources said the decision to sack Kumar was taken at a hurriedly convened meeting of AAP’s Political Affairs Committee at Kejriwal’s residence. “We will not tolerate any such acts. We have 67 MlAs. If anyone, including the Chief Minister, is found involved in any wrongdoings, immediate action will be taken as the AAP is different from other parties,” said Sisodia.
AAP leader Kumar Vishwas said Sandeep has also sent his resignation. “It is the Chief Minister’s prerogative who he wants in the Cabinet and who he doesn’t. But the party is of the view that such acts cannot be tolerated. We urge other parties also to follow the suit,” he told reporters.
On October 9 last year, Kejriwal had sacked the then Environment and Food Minister Asim Ahmed Khan for allegedly demanding a bribe of `6 lakh from a builder and recommended a CBI probe into the case.
In June last year, then law Minister Jitendra Singh Tomar had resigned after he was arrested on the charge of possessing fake degrees.
Reacting to the development, Delhi BJP said Kejriwal must resign accepting moral responsibility for picking up the morally corrupt MlA in the Cabinet.
“He must be rewarded for handing over Delhi’s governance to people with corrupt values. This has never happened in any Government,” said Delhi BJP leader Vijender Gupta.
DPCC president Ajay Maken too attacked the AAP saying three of the six Ministers who were initially inducted were caught for alleged “Fake degree, corruption, moral turpitude.”
“But who chose themIJ Why aren’t they expelled from PartyIJ,” he asked in a tweet.
Another Congress leader Mukesh Sharma also hit out at AAP and sought the resignation of the Delhi Chief Minister.