BJP trying to poach 7 AAP MLAs with ₹15 crore bribe, alleges Kejriwal

AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal accused the BJP on Thursday (February 6) of attempting to poach his party candidates by paying them ₹15 crore each to switch sides, ahead of the Delhi Assembly poll results on February 8.

The BJP dismissed the allegations and threatened legal action.

Delhi BJP general secretary Vishnu Mittal wrote to Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena asking him to register an FIR with the Anti-Corruption Bureau and any other investigating agency to investigate the offer of bribery of ₹15 crore to the sitting 7 MLAs of AAP.

'₹15 crore each to switch sides'

In a post on X, Kejriwal claimed that 16 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidates had received offers from the BJP with the promise of ministerial positions and ₹15 crore each if they switch sides.

"Some agencies are showing that the abusive party (BJP) is getting more than 55 seats. In the last two hours, 16 of our candidates have received calls that if they leave the AAP and join their party, they will be made ministers and given ₹15 crore each," Kejriwal said in his post in Hindi on the microblogging platform.

"If they are indeed winning more than 55 seats, why are they calling up our candidates? These fake surveys are a conspiracy to create an atmosphere to break AAP candidates. But not a single one of them will switch sides," he asserted.

Also read: Delhi elections: BJP upbeat about win; AAP, Cong reject exit polls, flay EC

Never abandon Kejriwal

Echoing Kejriwal's claims, AAP candidate from Sultanpur Majra and Delhi minister Mukesh Ahlawat said he was approached with such a offer.

"I may die, I may be cut into pieces, but I will never abandon Arvind Kejriwal," Ahlawat said in a post on X. "I was told that their government is being formed and they will make me a minister and give me Rs 15 crore if I leave the AAP and join them. But the respect that Kejriwal and the AAP have given me, I will never leave my party till my death," he added.

Earlier in the day, AAP leader Sanjay Singh raised these allegations at a press conference here, claiming that seven party MLAs had received calls or were approached in person with offers from BJP leaders.

"This clearly shows that the BJP has accepted its defeat even before the results and is now resorting to such tactics," the Rajya Sabha MP said.

Investigate bribery charges, says BJP

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP general secretary Vishnu Mittal wrote to Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena on the "serious" allegations levelled by Kejriwal and Sanjay Singh and sought his direction to register an FIR with the Anti-Corruption Bureau and any other investigating agency to investigate the offer of bribery of ₹15 crore to the sitting 7 MLAs of AAP.

"It is requested that Arvind Kejriwal & Sanjay Singh be summoned and detailed enquiry be done with regard to the details of the person who contacted MLAs and the mode and medium of contact et al. Needs to be investigated to unearth the truth," said Mittal's letter. According to Mittal, the AAP leaders have not furnished any proof to substantiate their allegations and is spreading false and malicious information.

Sign of frustration

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva called the allegations a sign of the AAP's "frustration" over an impending electoral defeat.

"Sanjay Singh should either retract his allegations and tender an apology or face legal action," Sachdeva said in a statement. "He should not forget that his party leader, (former) Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, is already facing a defamation case for making similar false allegations."

Record calls on poaching attempts

Meanwhile, Sanjay Singh maintained that the AAP has advised its candidates to record such calls and use spy cameras to document what transpires in any face-to-face meeting regarding poaching attempts.

Singh said that seven MLAs (of AAP) received phone calls from some BJP elements, who have offered to give them ₹15 crore to leave the Aam Aadmi Party and join the BJP.

"We have told the MLAs to record such audio calls and complain about it. If anyone meets them, they should make a video of it with a hidden camera... The BJP has accepted its defeat even before the counting of votes and like the rest of the country, the BJP has started the politics of breaking parties in Delhi as well...", he added.

Atishi responds

Chief Minister Atishi, who was the AAP candidate from Kalkaji, also weighed in on the issue. "If the abusive party (BJP) is getting more than 50 seats, then why are they trying to break our candidates by contacting them?" she asked in a post on X.

Atishi claimed that the exit polls predicting a BJP victory in Delhi are a "conspiracy" aimed at demoralising AAP candidates.

BJP hits back

Meanwhile, reacting to the allegations of horse-trading attempts, BJP leader Tarun Chugh pointed out, "All these allegations are the product of the conspiratorial evil mind of Arvind Kejriwal and the AAP-DA party because they know they are going to lose badly (the Delhi Elections)... Strict legal action should be taken against this lie..."

He also attacked Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi. "Rahul Gandhi is making unnecessary statements in frustration after facing two dozen consecutive defeats... Rahul Gandhi- please do not look at India through the glasses of Italy..."

Counting on Saturday

Polling for all the 70 Assembly seats in Delhi took place on Wednesday, with the votes set to be counted on Saturday.

The results will determine whether the AAP secures a third consecutive term in power or if the BJP's 27-year wait to rule the capital comes to an end.