Kejri ‘ sorry’ spree extends to Gadkari
CM acquitted in 3 defamation cases out of 33
After saying sorry to Punjab’s Akali leader , Delhi chief minister and AAP convener has tendered written unconditional apologies to Union minister Nitin Gadkari and advocate Amit Sibal, son of Congress leader Kapil Sibal, in an attempt to end two separate criminal defamation cases against him.
Four years after calling Mr Gadkari “one of the country’s most corrupt politicians”, Mr Kejriwal struck a conciliatory note while his deputy Manish Sisodia, who was the coaccused in the defamation suit filed by Amit Sibal, asserted that the “party does not want expend time in ego fight” and would rather focus on serving people.
The latest regret by the AAP convener comes just days after he offered an apology to Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia for alleging that he was “involved in the drug trade”.
The apology to Mr Majithia, a former Punjab revenue minister, has drawn flak from his own party members in Punjab.
Mr Kejriwal, in his two separate apology letters to Mr Gadkari and Mr Sibal, said he regretted making the defamatory remarks without verification and accepted that they were “unfounded allegations”.
Kapil Sibal later said that Mr Kejriwal’s apology had been accepted, adding, “We don’t want to fight with anyone.”
Senior advocate Pinky Anand, who appeared for Mr Gadkari, struck a similar note and said Mr Kejriwal closing the issue was in the “larger interest of the nation” but asserted he must understand that defamation is a very strong offence.
“He should be careful in future,” she said.
Continuing his move to clear the mess of a string of defamation suits filed against him and his party colleagues, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday tendered written unconditional apologies to Union minister and BJP leader Nitin Gadkari and advocate Amit Sibal, son of Congress leader Kapil Sibal, in two separate criminal defamation cases after which he was acquitted by a city court.
The AAP chief, with 33 defamation cases against him in 22 states, has as of today crossed three cases off his list by saying sorry to the complainants.
Mr Kejriwal struck a conciliatory tone after calling Mr Gadkari “one of the country’s most corrupt politicians” in 2014, while his deputy Manish Sisodia, who was the coaccused in the defamation suit by Mr Sibal asserted that the “party does not want expend time in ego fight” and would rather focus on serving the people.
The latest regret by the AAP chief comes just days after he offered an apology to Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia in connection with comments over his alleged involvement in the drug trade. The apology to Mr Majithia, a former Punjab revenue minister, had drawn flak from his own party members. Mr Kejriwal, in his two separate apology letters, said he regretted making the defamatory remarks without any verification and accepted that they were based on “unfounded allegations”.