Kejriwal Challenges Modi to Offer Free Power in BJP States Before Delhi Polls
NEW DELHI: AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal Sunday challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide free electricity in the 22 BJP-led NDA-ruled states before the Delhi Assembly elections and vowed to campaign for the saffron party if his demand is fulfilled. At the "Janta Ki Adalat" rally, the AAP chief dared the BJP to hold elections in Delhi along with the Jharkhand and Maharashtra polls in November. The Delhi Congress and the BJP, on their part, dubbed the rally a "flop show".
Addressing his second Janta Ki Adalat rally at Chhatrasal Stadium, Mr Kejriwal said that the BJP's "double engine" governments are failing. "Double engine governments mean inflation, corruption and unemployment," he said, adding, "The exit polls show that the BJP's double engine governments will soon collapse in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir."
While Delhi Congress chief Devender Yadav claimed that people skipped tainted Mr Kejriwal’s Janata Ki Adalat for the second time, as they don’t believe in his empty rhetoric any more, the BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said that the former chief minister of Delhi failed to get public or party cadre support.
During his speech, Mr Kejriwal showed a packet containing six "revris" (sweets) and said that each revri symbolised the six free services -- free electricity, water, bus rides for women, pilgrimage for the elderly, healthcare and education -- provided by the AAP government.
The AAP chief announced that the same packets will be distributed to the public and urged them to treat it as "prasad".
"When you return home, perform puja with this and share it with others... If by mistake you vote for the BJP, all your six benefits will vanish," the former chief minister warned the gathering and alleged that if the BJP comes to power, services such as the DTC, government schools and hospitals will be handed over to private entities.
Training his gun at the BJP and the Prime Minister, Mr Kejriwal said, "Modi Ji, there are elections in Delhi in February. The BJP is in power in 22 states. Make electricity free in these states and I will campaign for you (the BJP, Mr Modi) in the Delhi elections."
Mr Kejriwal claimed the BJP government has failed in Haryana, saying, "No one in Haryana is letting them enter their villages. People are resisting them." He also described the BJP's handling of the Manipur situation as disastrous, accusing them of allowing the state to burn for seven years under their rule.
The AAP supremo labelled the BJP's "double engine" model "double loot and double corruption" model. He also accused the BJP of being anti-poor, citing the removal of bus marshals and data entry operators, as well as for stopping the salaries of home guards in Delhi.
"Fear God; shame on you. They will punish you," Mr Kejriwal said, accusing the BJP of affecting the livelihoods of many in the national capital. He also took a jab at Mr Modi's alleged "close ties" with big corporates and said, "Modi Ji has a friend who gets all the contracts from the Centre."
"There is no democracy in Delhi; it's under L-G's rule," Mr Kejriwal alleged and vowed to free the city from "L-G Raj" and get full statehood.
The AAP supremo accused the BJP of deliberately targeting AAP workers and leaders while ignoring critical issues like law and order in Delhi. He alleged that his insulin stopped in jail and said, "My kidney could have failed, and I could have died."
"I have only worked for the people; I did not do it for myself or my family. I never gave a ticket to my son; I gave it to your children," Kejriwal said, adding, "I pledge to liberate Delhi from the rule of the rich."