The BJP on Thursday slammed AAP after the latter received a notice from Delhi's Directorate of Information and Publicity (DIP) to pay back $20 million it supposedly used for the party's promotion.
"Notice issued to AAP govt for payment of Rs 163 cr ($20 million) within ten days should be welcomed," BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala tweeted this morning.
"AAP = Aur Advertisement-vali Party. It blew up public money for political advt in violation of SC order, Delhi HC order. They should pay up instead of playing victim card!" the BJP politician added.
Where Did the Money Go?
The DIP issued a notice to recover ₹1.63 billion ($20 million) of taxpayer money from the Arvind Kejriwal-led political outfit that it allegedly used on political advertisements under the veil of government advertisements.
In its directive, the authorities requested AAP to deposit the aforementioned amount within a timeframe of 10 days.
"If the AAP convener fails to do so, all consequential legal action including attachment of the properties of the party shall be taken in time bound manner, as per the earlier order of the Delhi LG," the notice stated.
The development is the extension of Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) Vinai Kumar Saxena's order last month.
Hitting back at Saxena, the AAP claimed that he had no powers to issue such orders to the party, alleging a conspiracy against the party.
"The BJP is flustered that we have become a national party and wrested power from it in the MCD. LG sahab is doing everything in accordance with the BJP's directions and that is troubling the people of Delhi. The more worried Delhi's people are, the happier the BJP gets," AAP chief spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj said at the time.