"No Written Complaints...": EC Rejects Kejriwal’s Claims of Attacks on AAP Workers

In response to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal’s allegations of harassment of his party workers ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday issued a formal clarification. The ECI stated that no written complaints could be traced regarding the accusations made by Kejriwal.

According to a letter from the ECI’s Model Code of Conduct (MCC) Nodal Officer, the District Election Officer (DEO) of New Delhi confirmed that no written complaints were found on record concerning the intimidation and harassment claims by AAP volunteers allegedly by BJP workers in the New Delhi Assembly Constituency. The letter read, "DEO, New Delhi stated that regarding allegations against BJP workers for intimidating and harassing AAP volunteers in New Delhi Assembly Constituency, as reported by police, and upon perusal of available records, no written complaints could be traced in most of the cases."

The poll body assured that all complaints filed by political parties, including those related to such allegations, are thoroughly investigated in accordance with legal procedures and ECI norms.

"Whenever written complaints are received from any political party citing such allegations, all such matters are investigated invariably in accordance with laws & ECI norms, and appropriate action as per ECI norms is either initiated or recommended in all such cases," the letter further stated.

Kejriwal had earlier written to the Chief Election Commissioner, expressing concerns about the intimidation of his party's grassroots volunteers in the New Delhi Assembly constituency. In his letter, Kejriwal specifically pointed out harassment allegedly carried out by BJP workers and Delhi Police in the lead-up to the election.

"I am writing to express my grave concern over the intimidation and harassment being meted out to our grass-root volunteers in the New Delhi Assembly Constituency at the hands of BJP workers and Delhi Police in the run-up to election day," he stated.

In his bid for re-election, Kejriwal faces competition from Congress’s Sandeep Dikshit and BJP’s Parvesh Verma in the New Delhi constituency. The Delhi Assembly elections are scheduled for February 5, with the vote count to be held on February 8.

Additionally, the ECI confirmed the deployment of independent observers across all constituencies, including New Delhi, in response to Kejriwal’s demand for fair election monitoring. The ECI assured that General Observers, Expenditure Observers, and Police Observers have been assigned to all constituencies to ensure transparent and smooth elections.

The Election Commission's response comes amid growing political tensions in the run-up to the elections, as allegations and counter-allegations continue to surface ahead of voting day.