‘We are going to teach the AAP a lesson in Delhi elections’ says Meenakshi Lekhi

After the ‘historic’ wins in Haryana and Maharashtra, the BJP plans to target Delhi. But it has been dragging its feet in declaring elections in Delhi. Though the AAP was decimated in the Lok Sabha polls, there are reports of AAP regrouping. Sanjay Kaw speaks with BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi about the party’s Delhi gameplan.

Now that you have captured Maharashtra and Haryana, when will you be holding the much-awaited Assembly polls in Delhi?
The national capital is under President’s Rule only because those elected to power failed to deliver on their promises. After the Lok Sabha elections, the political sentiment all over the country has become identical. If elections are held in Delhi, the result is not going to be way off from Haryana.

The party seems to be in two minds about holding elections in Delhi. Have you decided on your chief ministerial candidate?
All such decisions are taken by our party leadership. Each and every worker of our party is a disciplined soldier. We go by whatever our leadership decides. But our political opponents should realise that Modiji’s charisma has changed the political landscape of the country. His honest approach towards his work has created a magical bond between the people of this country and our party workers.

There are reports of the AAP quietly working in Delhi. AAP leaders are thronging slum clusters, which form a major votebank. In the last Assembly polls, AAP won 28 of the 70 Assembly seats. There’s a strong possibility of Muslims voting for the AAP...
You forgot one thing, that we won all the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi. The Congress was decimated to the third slot. And let me assure you, we will win the Assembly polls with a comfortable majority. Delhiites have seen the way AAP has been functioning. Our electorate wants results. You cannot fool people by repeatedly making false promises. We also do not believe in dividing communities in the name of votebank. Muslims are an integral part of our country; like Hindus, they too want peace and development. They know only Modiji can change their fortune. We are going to teach the AAP a lesson in the state elections.

Even though your government is at the Centre, many development projects are on hold in Delhi…
The entire administration of Delhi has been ruined by the Congress in the past 15 years. Delhiites are suffering because of multiplicity of authority. Our government made a provision of '600 crore for the city’s drainage system, but the entire drainage system is in a mess. It is looked after by the city administration. Only storm water is looked after by the municipal bodies, which have been rendered toothless over the years. The Union urban development ministry is looking into the unification of authority for the three municipal corporations. I must admit that the city was in a mess for about six months after President’s Rule, but work picked up after we formed the government at the Centre. A serious effort was made to allocate a sensible budget for Delhi. All that we need to do now is to correct the processes and deliver at a certain speed.

Your party had promised full statehood for Delhi.
Whatever we have promised, we will deliver. But we will take each and every step after analysing all its merits and demerits. The New Delhi Municipal Council functions like a state within the state. We need an integrated approach to resolve all the pressing issues concerning the common man.

What are the key issues that will dominate Delhi during the polls?
Our major thrust will be to provide houses to jhuggi dwellers, light up dark areas, provide drinking water to quench the thirst of the poor, ensure adequate security among the masses and create skill development-related jobs for the unemployed youth.

You had also promised 30 per cent subsidy on power tariffs before the last Assembly polls in Delhi.
If I am correct, we have already given about 32.8 per cent subsidy on power in the city.

Besides Delhi, what are your immediate electoral concerns?
We will be completely focusing on the elections in Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand, where the term of the Assembly ends in January 2015. The results of the Assembly elections in Haryana and Maharashtra have reiterated that the people of this country are not going to vote for parties which have failed to deliver. Wherever elections are held in this country, people are going to vote for “brand Modi”. Our Prime Minister Narendra Modiji has delivered on each and every promise he has made to the citizens of this country. As far as Jammu and Kashmir is concerned, it is a live example of bad governance. The National Conference-led government has failed on all fronts to bring in development in the state. Similar is the case with Jharkhand. People of this country have started responding to Modiji’s call of India and Indianness. One thing is now loud and clear, that India is all about being Indian. Our party will definitely record a spectacular victory in Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand.

How do you read Maharashtra’s results? Despite the so-called “Modi wave”, you could not get a simple majority.
True. If we had taken a decision to contest on our own much before, we would have easily sailed through the halfway mark. We did not buckle during the seat-sharing talks with the Shiv Sena mainly because we were confident of winning a majority of seats. Our party had due diligence of each and every Assembly seat in both Maharashtra and Haryana.

As a member of Parliament, what all have you done for your New Delhi constituency?
I am working relentlessly to implement all the schemes announced by the Centre. My focus is on creating skill development-related jobs. I opened 33 gymnasiums. Under the Smart City project, we have introduced WiFi network in Khan Market. The network will soon be operational in Connaught Place. We have set up bio-digestive toilets. The Energy Efficiency Services Limited will be replacing all the streetlights with LED lamp-posts free of cost in the NDMC area. The money saved on electricity will be shared between the company and the government. I am also working on “urban villages” — their conditions are worse than the slums.