Since Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was sent to Tihar jail in his alleged connection with Delhi excise policy case, several twists and turns surfaced. His party - Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) - made several allegations, including conspiracy to kill him inside the jail, prompting the Tihar jail authorities to refute the allegations. In the latest development, the Tihar management claimed that Kejriwal breached jail guidelines by writing a letter to Lt Governor VK Saxena on August 6. The Tihar authorities informed the Delhi CM that his letter to LG saying Atishi would hoist the Tricolour on Independence Day was "an abuse of privileges" granted to him under the Delhi Prison Rules.
The superintendent of Tihar's jail number 2 cited various provisions of the Delhi Prisons Rules, 2018, and advised Kejriwal in a letter "to desist from any such impermissible activity" or his privileges would be curtailed.
In a letter to the lieutenant governor last week, Kejriwal said Cabinet minister Atishi would hoist the national flag during the Delhi government's Independence Day programme in his stead.
The lieutenant governor's office, however, had denied receiving any communication from the chief minister. Kejriwal is lodged in Tihar jail in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) case in connection with the alleged excise policy scam. He has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court in the excise policy-linked money-laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
In the letter to Kejriwal, the Tihar authorities said, "From a bare reading of the above rules, it is clear that your communication does not qualify in the permissible communication which can be sent outside the prison. Only private correspondence with a designated set of people, as defined above, is permissible. Therefore, your letter dated 06.08.2024 has not been sent to the addressee but has been filed."
Letter leaked to media: Tihar authority
"It is surprising to note that the contents of the letter, which was handed over by you on August 6, were leaked to the media without any authority. This amounts to an abuse of privileges granted to you under the Delhi Prison Rules, 2018," it added. The jail superintendent advised Kejriwal "to desist from any such impermissible activity". "...failing which I shall be constrained to invoke the provisions of Delhi Prison Rules, 2018, to curtail your privileges," the letter stated. The letter cited Rule 588, which states that the contents of all letters written by prisoners shall be limited to private matters.
(With PTI inputs)
