The race to the chair in the Delhi government seems to be getting murkier, with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) releasing a 'sting' video, which shows a BJP leader allegedly trying to poach an MLA from its party to get the required numbers in the assembly.
AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal has claimed that the video, which was published on the party's YouTube page, was shot at BJP state vice president Sher Singh Dagar's house, where he was caught on camera offering a bribe to AAP MLA Dinesh Mohania to abstain from voting in case of a trust vote. Kejriwal claims that the money being offered in the 'poaching' attempt was ₹4 crore.
"The BJP has formed multiple teams to poach our MLAs. They are offering money to abstain from voting so that they get the majority mark and form the government in the Capital. We will not let this happen," Kejriwal, who had earlier stepped down as the Delhi chief minister, said at a media conference on Monday.
Kejriwal had also met President Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday over the issue of Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung seeking to bring the single largest party to power in the state.
At present, the BJP is the largest party in the Delhi Assembly with 29 seats, but it is falling short of the magic figure of 32 to form the next government.
The AAP leader had argued that such a move could lead to 'horse-trading' to make the next government. Congress had also cried foul over Jung's move.
This video by AAP could have a damaging impact on the BJP and on Delhi itself, which has been headless since February after Kejriwal stepped down.
The 17-minute video, shot on 7 September, has a grainy footage of Dagar speaking in Hindi.
The AAP leader has vowed to take the bribery matter to the Supreme Court, alleging that three other MLAs of his party were similarly approached, so that the BJP gets the majority.
"We will submit the sting's raw footage before the Supreme Court when it discusses the issue of Delhi government formation, lodge FIRs with the police, and also approach the election commission," Kejriwal said.
The BJP, however, has questioned the authenticity of the video and has claimed to "reveal the truth".
