Chandigarh, Aug 20 (PTI) The ruling Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab on Saturday said the growing popularity of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had alarmed the BJP, causing it to "misuse" the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against the AAP leaders.

The 2024 Lok Sabha election is clearly a battle between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and AAP national convener Kejriwal, chief spokesperson of the AAP in Punjab Malvinder Singh Kang said here.

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"They (BJP leaders) want to stop Kejriwal at any cost," he claimed.

"We are not afraid of PM Modi and CBI raids. People across the country are seeing Kejriwal as an alternative to Modi and the BJP is scared of his increasing political stature," Kang said, lashing at the Centre a day after the raid at Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia's residence.

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The CBI had on Friday carried out searches at the residences of Sisodia, IAS officer Arava Gopi Krishna and 19 other locations after registering an FIR in connection with the alleged corruption in implementation of the Delhi excise policy.

Kang refuted the allegation and dubbed the raids a "political propaganda" of the BJP to defame the AAP government. Such raids cannot stop Kejriwal's mission to make India the 'Number One' country in the world, he added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)