November 21, 2024

Arvind Kejriwal has swallowed his pride and despite his megalomania, written a trite note of apology to former Punjab minister Bikram Singh Majithia whom he had accused of being involved in the drug racket allegedly being run in the state. Majithia had slapped a defamation case against Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh and Aashish Khetan. The reason for the apology being given by AAP is that top leaders were unnecessarily being involved in court cases that consumed their time and resources. Hence, they have decided to apologize and settle the matter to devote their time and energy in governing Delhi. But it is clear to everyone that since Kejriwal and others can never prove their charges in court they have chosen to take this way out of a tricky situation that can leave them facing a hefty penalty or even a jail term. Rumours are that Kejriwal might even apologize to Arun Jaitley whom he had accused of corruption as head of DDCA as Jaitley had also filed a defamation case which is pending.

But not everyone in AAP is happy at the turn of events. The Punjab unit of AAP has seen a rebellion of sorts with its chief Bhagwat Singh Mann resigning in protest. At least one of Kejriwal’s co-defendent’s in the defamation case, senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh who is close to Kejriwal, has already said on record that he stands by his allegations and will not apologize. This leads one to believe that the apology by Kejriwal is just a ruse to disentangle him from the mess. The matter will be kept alive by his cohorts. If AAP was genuinely interested in settling the matter, it should have made all those who were a party to the case to apologize.

Motor mouths exist in all parties in India. Some foment trouble by making fiery speeches that have the potential of disturbing communal peace. They are to be found in hard line parties on both sides of the communal divide. Others indulge in character assassination by making unsubstantiated charges. They are found in all parties but more in regional ones. Lately, Kejriwal and his cohorts have made AAP the biggest source of such motor mouths.

Hence, whatever be the actual reason for tendering the apology, it is welcome. One hopes that all other political leaders who have made such charges against their rivals and against whom defamation cases are pending will learn from Kejriwal. They should immediately tender similar apologies and settle the matter, if not for anything else then to free the legal system of these unwanted cases. Also, such leaders including Kejriwal (especially Kejriwal) should keep a tight leash on their brain and mouth and make only those charges that they can prove in court.