“Stepping Away Till…,” Writes Manish Sisodia In Resignation Letter

New Delhi:

Manish Sisodia, seen by many as the mainstay of Aam Aadmi Party’s government in Delhi and second-in-command of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, stepped down from his post today, saying he wishes to stay away till “the charges are proven false”.

In a three-page resignation letter, Mr Sisodia said while there could be more cases against him, the allegations are false. “These allegations are nothing more than a conspiracy of cowards and weak people… Their target is not me, their target is Arvind Kejriwal,” he wrote.

“No one can force me to be corrupt… India’s freedom fighters are my source of strength,” he added, expressing faith that their “fight for truth will give us political strength… the blessings of lakhs of Delhi government school children, their parents and teachers are with me”.

Mr Sisodia’s resignation came less than 48 hours after his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation in connection wit the alleged liquor scam in Delhi. The other arrested minister of AAP to step down with him was Satyendar Jain, who has been in jail for the last eight months on corruption charges.

Since Mr Jain’s arrest, his portfolios were handled by Mr Sisodia, who was in charge of 18 government departments.