The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Amanatullah Khan after a six-hour questioning session at his residence in Okhla, New Delhi. Khan, who is under investigation in connection with the Delhi Waqf Board scam, had earlier in the day announced on social media that ED officials had arrived at his home to apprehend him.
In a video posted on his X (formerly Twitter) handle, Khan claimed that the federal agency’s action was politically motivated and part of a broader campaign to harass him and other AAP leaders. He accused the central government of using the ED to suppress voices that oppose it, referring to the agency as a “puppet” of a “dictator.”
“Just now, early in the morning, at the behest of the dictator, his puppet ED has reached my house. The dictator is leaving no stone unturned in harassing me and AAP leaders,” Khan said in the video. He further expressed frustration over the ongoing investigation, questioning, “Is it a crime to serve the people honestly? How long will this dictatorship last?”
The arrest came amid a heavy security presence at Khan’s residence, with personnel from the Delhi Police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) deployed in the area.
Several AAP leaders have condemned the arrest, accusing the BJP-led central government of misusing central agencies to target political opponents. Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia criticized the ED’s actions, suggesting that the agency’s primary role has become suppressing dissent against the ruling party. “This is the only work left for ED. Suppress every voice raised against BJP. Break it. Arrest and put in jail those who do not break or get suppressed,” Sisodia wrote on X.
Sanjay Singh, another senior AAP leader, also took to social media to denounce what he described as the ED’s “cruelty.” He shared a video showing Khan confronting ED officials at his home, questioning their presence if they were not there to arrest him. Singh argued that there is no evidence against Khan and that the ED’s actions are an example of ongoing harassment by the central government.
Amanatullah Khan, an MLA from the Okhla constituency, is under investigation by the ED for alleged money laundering linked to his tenure as chairman of the Delhi Waqf Board. The probe is based on a 2016 FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which accuses Khan of illegal appointments to non-existent vacancies at the Delhi Waqf Board, leading to financial losses for the Delhi government and illicit gains for himself.
The ED has alleged that Khan obtained significant sums of money through these illegal recruitments and used the funds to purchase properties in the names of his associates.
AAP spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj described the central government’s actions as a “matter of great shame,” arguing that despite extensive investigations, no concrete evidence of financial wrongdoing has been found against Khan. Bharadwaj suggested that the central government’s strategy is to keep Delhi government departments understaffed and that such pressure tactics are likely to escalate as elections approach.
