'My name is Arvind Kejriwal and I'm not a terrorist'

"My names is Arvind Kejriwal and I am not a terrorist" is the Delhi chief minister's message for the countrymen from Tihar jail, AAP leader Sanjay Singh said Tuesday, slamming the BJP for the treatment being meted out to him in custody.

The BJP is trying to break him out of "malice and vendetta" but he will emerge stronger from all of this, Singh said.

Addressing a press conference here, Singh alleged that a "notorious criminal" lodged in Tihar jail was allowed to meet his lawyer and wife in the barrack, while Kejriwal had to meet Punjab Chief Minster Bhagwant Mann across a glass screen.

Hurt by the treatment being given to him, Kejriwal has sent a message for the countrymen: "My names is Arvind Kejriwal and I am not a terrorist", Singh said.

The Delhi chief minister's assertion borrows from Shahrukh Khan-starrer 'My Name is Khan' in 2010 in which the actor famously says "My Name is Khan and I am not a terrorist".

Singh said, "Kejriwal was being treated like a terrorist and he was allowed to meet Punjab Chief Minster Bhagwant Mann across a glass screen."

Singh, who walked out of the jail recently after spending six months in a money laundering case, alleged, "In jail number 2 of Tihar, a notorious criminal meets his lawyer and wife inside the barrack. Meetings of other inmates are also held in the office of the jail." He did not take any names though.

Director General (prisons) Sanjay Baniwal on Monday said no distinction is made in the treatment meted out to the inmates and it is ensured they get the same basic rights.

Mann met Kejriwal in jail on Monday and alleged that he was not getting the amenities even a hardcore criminal is allowed in Tihar.

Senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh on Tuesday alleged that a notorious criminal meets his wife and lawyer inside the barrack in Tihar jail while Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is being treated like a "terrorist".

The AAP national convener was allowed to meet Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann only through a glass screen, said Singh, who recently walked out of the prison after spending six months there in a money laundering case, at a press conference.

There was no immediate response from the Tihar jail administration to Singh's claims.

"Kejriwal is being treated like a terrorist. He was allowed to meet Punjab Chief Minster Bhagwant Mann only through a glass screen," Singh alleged.

"In Tihar's jail number 2, a notorious criminal meets his wife and lawyer inside the barrack. Meetings of other inmates are also held in the office of the jail," the AAP leader said without naming anyone.

Due to "malice and vendetta", the BJP is trying to break Kejriwal but he will emerge stronger as a result of the treatment being meted out to him in jail, Singh said.

Mann met Kejriwal in prison on Monday and alleged he was being treated like a "terrorist". He claimed the AAP national convener was also not getting the amenities that even a hardcore criminal is allowed in Tihar.

Responding to this, Director General (Prisons) Sanjay Baniwal said no distinction is made in the treatment meted out to the inmates and it is ensured they get the same basic rights.

Responding to this, Baniwal said, "There is no distinction between a hardcore or a normal criminal. In the jail manual, there is no distinction between the inmates. Every inmate has basic rights and it is my duty to ensure that. These are being ensured to everyone."

Nobody is accorded special treatment and there is no such provision, he said.