Arvind Kejriwal finally responsed to the allegations that he wanted the tax payers to foot the legal fee of Ram Jethmalani in the defamation cases filed against him by Arun Jaitley.

On Tuesday evening, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, while addressing a rally before the MCD election, said, "It was a case of corruption... Should I pay (Ram) Jethmalami from my pocket?".

He said people must decide if the government pays for Ram Jethmalani's fee or Arvind Kejriwal. While those in the crowd chanted "government", the noted lawyer, on his part, has clarified that money or no money he is willing to fight the case for Arvind Kejriwal and question Arun Jaitley.

HERE IS ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE ARVIND KEJRIWAL-RAM JETHMALANI FEE CONTROVERSY: Senior advocate Ram Jethmalani reportedly sent Arvind Kejriwal bills to the tune of Rs 3.8 crore approx. for representing him in the defamation case filed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. According to reports, Ram Jethmalani reportedly charged Rs 1 crore in retainership and Rs 22 lakh for each appearance in the court. AAP leaders claimed that Jethmalani had initially offered to represent Arvind Kejriwal free of cost in the defamation cases but nine months after taking the cases he started sending bills to the Delhi chief minister. Arvind Kejriwal's deputy Manish Sisodia reportedly signed the bills and forwarded them to Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal for clearance. The LG has sought opinion from experts to decide on the issue. As questions were being raised on why and how Arvind Kejriwal could let people pay for his bills, Ram Jethmalani came to his client's defence and said the Delhi chief minister has not stolen money and submitted proper bills to the LG. Jethmalani accused Arun Jaitley for instigating all this because the minister "was afraid of my cross-examination". Ram Jethmalani said he was willing to treat Kejriwal as one of his "poor clients" and defend him in the court free of cost. "I charge only the rich but for the poor I work for free. If the (Delhi) government doesn't pay or he (Kejriwal) can't pay, I will appear for free," Ram Jethmalani said. The Opposition, however, upped the ante against the Delhi chief minister. "There are seven defamation cases against him (Kejriwal) as far as I know. This may total up to (Rs) 100 crore. Will he make the people of Delhi pay the 100 crore," asked Union minister and BJP leader Prakash Javadekar. The Delhi government, however, maintained that the case Arvind Kejriwal was fighting against Arun Jaitley was a public and not a private issue. "There were allegations of corruption in DDCA. Our government formed a committee to probe this matter and free cricket from corruption," CM Arvind Kejriwal's deputy Manish Sisodia said. Later, Arvind Kejriwal, at an election rally in Seemapuri, maintained the stance and said he was taking on Arun Jaitley over corruption in Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) when the Finance Minister was heading it. The defamation cases relate to Arvind Kejriwal and the other accused making statements alleging that Arun Jaitley was involved in a DDCA scam during his time at the cricketing body. Jaitley was the president of DDCA for nearly 13 years. The civil defamation suit filed by Jaitley seeks Rs 10 crore as damages.

(with inputs from IANS)

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