Giving clean chit to its leaders caught in sting operation by a website, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday said that the tapes of the sting operation against some of its senior leaders were doctored and money was distributed to some media houses to defame the party.
Arvind Kejriwal claimed that Rs1,400 crore were distributed to some media houses to defame the party. Kejriwal’s allegation comes in the wake of a sting operation by a website, which showed some AAP members allegedly accepting cash donations without proper verification.
“I am told Rs1,400 crore have been distributed to a few media houses. Who are these media houses? There are a number of media houses and journalist who are honest but a few are blacksheep, who have sold their soul. This CD episode has clearly shown who the blacksheep within media are. Guess which of these channels would have got how much of Rs1400 crore?,” tweeted Kejriwal.
The party also held a press conference here Sunday in which it gave a clean chit to all its members featured in the video and reiterated that it will sue the media portal’s chief executive officer Anuranjan Jha as well as some other media houses. Kejriwal tweeted, “We will send criminal defamation notices to such media houses and to Anuranjan Jha”.
AAP leader and lawyer Prashant Bhushan said, “We will soon be filing civil and criminal defamation cases against the media portal and some channels.”
AAP alleged that after watching raw footage it has found that the footage given to media houses was doctored. AAP leader Yogendra Yadav said that important statements made by party activists had been deleted out and appealed to media houses to be more circumspect in their handling of such incidents. “Portions have been edited and deleted to show AAP candidates in bad light. There is political motivation behind the operation. All our members are honest and innocent,” party leader Yogendra Yadav said.
The sting that came out Thursday showed AAP leaders were raising fund from il
Meanwhile, Nutan Thakur, an AAP member from Lucknow, on Sunday resigned from the party expressing unhappiness over the alleged involvement of party members in a sting operation.
“I have resigned from the party after I saw the way the party handled the sting operation,” she said.
Thakur said that she was not holding any post in the party and was just a member.
Reacting to this, AAP spokesperson Manish Sisodia said the party was more concerned about those volunteers or members who have been working on the field day and night. “Such people (like Thakur) should leave the party, because they have not actively participated in the party’s activities,” he said.
