- Tuesday, January 14, 2025
The AAP chief said that he spoke just one line about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and the response came from the BJP
By: India Weekly
AAP CHIEF Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls will expose the “jugalbandi” between the Congress and the BJP.
Kejriwal said that he spoke just one line about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and the response is coming from the BJP.
“Look how much trouble the BJP is facing. This Delhi election will perhaps expose the ‘jugalbandi’ going on behind the scenes between the Congress and the BJP for years,” he said in a post on X.
The AAP supremo was referring to BJP IT department head Amit Malviya’s post.
“Worry about the country later, save the New Delhi seat for now,” Malviya said on X citing Kejriwal’s response to Gandhi’s attack on him.
Kejriwal holding the New Delhi seat since 2013 is pitted against BJP’s Parvesh Verma and Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit this time.
In another post on X, Kejriwal said the AAP is fighting against the entire “rotten” system that needs to be changed in alliance with people.
“The BJP and Congress are parts of the same rotten system,” he said.
The relations between the AAP and the Congress, both partners of the INDIA bloc, have been strained after they failed to enter into a pre-poll alliance for the Haryana Assembly polls last year.
Addressing an election rally in Seelampur on Monday (13), Gandhi said prime minister Narendra Modi and Kejriwal remain silent on the issue of caste census as they do not want people from the backward community, Dalits, tribals and minorities to get their due share.
Specifically targeting Kejriwal at his first public meeting for the Delhi polls, the Congress leader said that the AAP convenor was following Modi’s “strategy of propaganda and false promises” despite rising pollution, corruption and inflation in the national capital.
Responding to the attack, Kejriwal said that Gandhi was trying to save his party while he was fighting to save the country. He also accused Gandhi of abusing him.
The AAP and the Congress contested the last Lok Sabha polls in 2024 sharing seats in Delhi. However, both parties are now independently fighting the assembly polls scheduled on February 5.
Kejriwal video
Stepping up its attack on Kejriwal, the Congress on Tuesday referred to an old video in which the AAP convenor is purportedly talking about reservation and said it has now understood why he remains mum on caste census and removing the 50 per cent cap on quota.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared an old undated video of Kejriwal in which he is purportedly heard telling the audience that if someone benefits from reservation then that family should not get it again and another family should benefit from reservation.
“We also believe that if a family, from these sections of the society…if someone is economically well-off then that person should not get reservation someone else should get reservation,” Kejriwal purportedly says in the video.
There was no immediate reaction from AAP and the veracity of the video could not be independently ascertained.
“Kejriwal’s views must be heard on the issue reservation. Now it is understood – Why he remains silent on the removal of 50% cap on reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs in government employment and government educational institutions, and on caste census,” Ramesh said in a post in Hindi on X.
Ramesh’s remarks come a day after former Congress president Rahul Gandhi launched a blistering attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Kejriwal, saying there is no difference between the two leaders and they do not want backwards, Dalits, tribals and minorities to get their due share.
Specifically targeting Kejriwal at his first public meeting for Delhi assembly polls, Gandhi said the AAP convenor was following “Modi’s strategy of propaganda and false promises” despite rising pollution, corruption and inflation in the national capital.
He also promised a caste survey in Delhi if the Congress formed the government in the national capital.
Gandhi hailed the work done under three successive Sheila Dikshit-led governments and asserted that neither Kejriwal nor the BJP can match the Congress’ track record.
The former Congress chief had urged Kejriwal to make his stand clear on the issue of caste census and the demand for the removal of the 50 per cent cap on reservation.
Voters’ list irregularities
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva raised concerns on Tuesday (14) over alleged irregularities in the voter list.
Accompanied by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Bansuri Swaraj and senior party leader Om Pathak, Sachdeva met Election Commission (EC) officials to highlight their grievances.
He claimed that more than five lakh new voter applications have been filed in recent days, including many that have raised suspicions.
“We found out that a significant number of these applicants are aged 80 years or above. How can an 80-year-old person not have a voter identity card until now? Who are these people?” Sachdeva questioned.
He also alleged that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal has applied to get the names of 40 voters from the Dalit Mandir area deleted and accused the former Delhi chief minister of being “anti-Dalit”.
“Kejriwal has filed an application to delete the names of 44 voters of a Valmiki temple. These people have been staying there for 22 years. He is anti-Dalit,” he said.
This comes after similar allegations were made by the AAP.
The AAP has been accusing the BJP of orchestrating a “voter scam” to manipulate the upcoming election results. The Kejriwal-led party has accused the BJP of resorting to unfair practices to regain power in the national capital after more than 25 years.
The political climate in Delhi remains tense as both parties continue to exchange allegations. With the voting set for February 5 and the results to be announced on February 8, the stakes are high for both the AAP and the BJP. (PTI)
