The BJP has accused the Congress of being hand in glove with the AAP after a newspaper report suggested that Delhi's ruling party paid more than $3.06 million to lawyers, including a prominent Congress politician Abhishek Manu Singhvi.
The payments were made to fight alleged corruption charges against AAP's second-in-command and Delhi Deputy State Chief Manish Sisodia.
"Why pay taxpayer money to defend corruption in Sharab Ghotala (Liquor scam)? AAP govt Legal fees goes up from ₹6.7cr ($813,000) to ₹25cr ($3.03 million)!! Most of it goes to Congress lawyer Abhishek Singhvi !! Is Congress B team of AAP & defending Sharab Ghotala? Is this not a waste to cover up corruption?," BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala tweeted on Monday.
Poonawala's scathing remarks against the AAP and Congress came after a media outlet claimed that the Arvind Kejriwal-led government paid $3.41 million in fees to prosecutors defending its members in the alleged Delhi Liquor Policy Scam (Delhi Excise Policy Scam) in the last 18 months.
Out of the $3.41 million spent in the past year and a half, $2.3 million were given to Singhvi while $642,989 went to Rahul Mehra who is appearing in court for another AAP lawmaker Satyendra Jain.
Singhvi was reportedly paid $1.8 million first before receiving another $497,521 in 2021-22. In the following eight months of the current financial year which ends on March 31, the duo has allegedly already got $636,007.
The AAP has been in hot waters since Indian law enforcement agencies launched a probe into a now-scrapped liquor policy following the recommendation of Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) Vinai Kumar Saxena.
The LG alleged irregularities in the framing and implementation of the policy.
Several rounds of raids have been conducted by India's economic intelligence and law enforcement agency the Enforcement Directorate, and the CBI at various locations across the country since August last year.
Sisodia, along with bureaucrats related to the excise department, have been named as suspects by the CBI in its complaint related to the liquor policy scam case.