Arun Jaitley and Arvind Kejriwal, at war over Cricket corruption, share Stage

Mangalore Today News Network

Kolkata, Jan 08, 2016:  West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee did not quite plan it that way, but she is set to pull off a political coup. Her big business summit will have on stage together Arun Jaitley and Arvind Kejriwal, now at war.

 

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who has recently Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, is the keynote speaker at the Kolkata event today. Mr Kejriwal will speak later.

The two leaders had attended a dinner with Mamata Banerjee last night. But this will be the first time they will share stage in public.

Mr Jaitley filed a criminal defamation case against Mr Kejriwal on December 22, following the Delhi Chief Minister’s allegations that he had presided over large-scale corruption in the Delhi cricket body during his 13-year-stint at the organisation’s top post. He has also filed a civil suit demanding Rs. 10 crore in damages.

On Wednesday, Mr Jaitley told a Delhi court that Mr Kejriwal had started a "false, malicious and defamatory campaign for political mileage, causing irreversible damage" to him. "Kejriwal has falsely stated that money was siphoned off and I was the beneficiary," he had added.

Mr Kejriwal has said Mr Jaitley should not "try to intimidate" him with a case. He and his Aam Aadmi Party, he said, was fighting against corruption, which, "will continue," he said.

Other speakers at the plenary session include Nitin Gadkari, Suresh Prabhu and Piyush Goyal -- key ministers in the Narendra Modi government. Industry leaders from across the country have also been invited.

Providing the summit the global touch are Bhutan’s Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, Bangladesh’s minister of commerce Tofail Ahmed and UK’s minister of state for employment, Priti Patel.