Chandigarh | Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab President and Cabinet Minister Aman Arora on Wednesday targeted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and said that instead of presenting concrete evidence, the central investigation agency is repeatedly defaming the AAP leadership through letters, media leaks and vague allegations. He said that the Punjab Police has already sought complete documents and electronic data from the agency, but the ED has failed to provide clear and usable evidence.
AAP Punjab state president Arora asserted that the BJP’s main objective is to create chaos, intimidate the political leadership and put government officials under pressure so that the elected Punjab government cannot function effectively. Aman Arora said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was right in his earlier criticism of the CBI, and today the ED and the CBI have become “parrots of the BJP”.
Addressing the media, AAP Punjab President and Cabinet Minister Aman Arora said, “The repeated letters sent by the ED to the Punjab DGP, including the latest letter seeking registration of an FIR under Section 66(2), show the ‘indifference and desperation’ of the BJP-led central government. The Punjab Police had written to the ED on August 28 itself seeking complete documentary and electronic evidence in support of the allegations.”
The AAP Punjab president said, “The Punjab Police has clearly told the ED that the material provided so far is vague and the entire evidence, documents and electronic data seized during the raids should be provided so that a proper investigation can be conducted. The ED was asked to send an officer along with the relevant material on September 1, but no such officer appeared.”
Taking a dig at the functioning of central agencies, Aman Arora recalled Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement as the Chief Minister of Gujarat in which he had called the CBI a “parrot” of the central government. He said, “Today I 100% agree with what Narendra Modi said then. Be it ED, CBI or other central agencies, all of them are working like parrots of the BJP government.”
Aman Arora said that the ED is deliberately throwing the names of Sanjeev Arora, Lal Chand Kataruchak and other AAP leaders in the media without proving any wrongdoing. He also noted that attempts are being made to reach him through his old friend Gaurav Dhir.
Presenting the facts of the case, Aman Arora said that the Change of Land Use (CLU) approvals related to the Alts project were given six times, but not a single CLU was given during the tenure of the AAP government. He said, “The approvals of 17 November 2011, 14 May 2012, 25 June 2013, 17 February 2018, 7 March 2018 and 7 March 2022 were given during the previous Congress or Akali-BJP governments.”
The cabinet minister further said that the layout plan was changed several times between 2011 and 2025, most of which were during the previous governments. “If the ED believes that these approvals and changes were illegal, then it should investigate the entire incident and not just target the AAP government,” said Aman Arora.
Aman Arora also questioned the ED’s focus on the policy of 25% land ownership for developers. He said that this policy was started during the Akali-BJP government in 2012 and was improved by the AAP government in 2025. He claimed, “The AAP government changed the policy and made it mandatory for developers to have 100% land ownership to get licenses and CLUs, thereby correcting the earlier flawed policy.”
Aman Arora also questioned the ED’s reliance on the FIR related to the case and said that the relevant FIR has already been quashed by the High Court. He asked, “If the FIR itself has been quashed, then what basis is left for the ECI?”
Demanding a full and impartial investigation, Aman Arora said that instead of selectively targeting the current government, the ED should investigate the entire period during which these approvals and policy decisions were taken. He named former Punjab Chief Ministers and Ministers Sukhbir Singh Badal, Captain Amarinder Singh, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa and Sukhjinder Singh Sarkaria and said, “If your investigation is true, then investigate everyone. Call everyone who has been responsible after 2012, only then the truth will come out.”
Rejecting attempts to create a political narrative by linking Gaurav Dhir’s name with his, Aman Arora said that their friendship has nothing to do with any alleged irregularities. He said, “Gaurav was my friend yesterday, he is my friend today and he will be my friend tomorrow. If the ED has any evidence against Aman Arora, then he should talk to Aman Arora directly instead of using someone else’s name to reach me.”
Aman Arora also appealed to the print, electronic and social media to independently verify the allegations made by the ED before publishing the news and to take the side of the concerned AAP leaders. He said that repeated publication of unverified allegations is damaging the image and the affected persons may be forced to take legal action for defamation. Aman Arora said, “This is not a matter of running away from the investigation. We welcome an impartial investigation based on facts and evidence. But selective targeting, media leaks and attempts at character assassination cannot be a substitute for evidence.”
He said that the BJP’s big strategy is to create confusion, intimidate the political leadership and put government officials under pressure so that the elected government cannot function effectively. He said, “The people of Punjab understand what is happening. The BJP has no answer on governance and development, so it wants to create an atmosphere of fear and chaos.”
Aman Arora reiterated that if the ED has solid evidence, then it should hand it over to the Punjab Police as demanded and let the law do its job. He said, “If there is evidence, then present it. Let the investigation be done properly. But this politics of selective notices and newspaper headlines will not work.”
