Attack on CM an attempt on his life by BJP: AAP

NEW DELHI: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday alleged that Tuesday's chilli powder attack on him at Delhi Secretariat was an attempt on his life as part of a "larger conspiracy by powerful people".

"I have been attacked four times in two years, and it is no minor issue. These attacks are not taking place, they are being ordered because we have become an obstacle and they want me to die," Kejriwal said.

Meanwhile, Delhi Police on Wednesday said that Anil Kumar Sharma, the man who assaulted Kejriwal, has been sent to judicial custody for 14 days.

At a press conference earlier in the day, his deputy Manish Sisodia accused the top leadership of Bharatiya Janata Party of planning the attack.

"BJP cannot compete with Arvind Kejriwal on governance, so they want to finish him off. Home Minister Rajnath Singh called Kejriwal and asked him to file a complaint in the attack on him. Is this the way an attack on a CM should be probed," Sisodia said.

Lashing out at Delhi Police, the Deputy CM also alleged it was acting on the behest of the BJP-ruled Centre and trying to save the culprit.

"Even 24 hours after the attack, the Lieutenant Governor has not reacted on it. This means that he also knew about it," Sisodia alleged.

"Sharma's Facebook profile shows that he is a member of the BJP. After failing to stop Kejriwal from working for the people of Delhi, now the BJP wants him eliminated.

"The entire series of events indicate that top BJP leadership had knowledge of the attack on Kejriwal," Sisodia claimed.

Meanwhile, members of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party held a massive protest outside the BJP's national headquarters on Wednesday against the attack on Kejriwal.

At the protest, AAP national secretary Pankaj Gupta alleged that the attacks on the party would intensify in coming days since the BJP was baffled, which, he added, was evident by deletion of 15 lakh voters' names in Delhi.

AAP Lok Sabha in-charge for East Delhi Atishi said, "If you attack one Arvind Kejriwal, thousand more will be born to fight the battle of the common man. The BJP should stop hiding behind the Delhi Police and compete with AAP on governance and delivery of promises."

MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj called the Delhi Police a "biased force", which was protecting "lunatics and anti-social elements", making the chief minister and his ministers vulnerable.