NEW DELHI: The Bhartiya Janata Party launched a sharp attack on the Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday, accusing it of hypocrisy and terming it an “electoral Hindu” in a post on X. The BJP alleged that the Arvind Kejriwal-led government has been “distributing salaries to Imams for 10 years” while now attempting to court Hindu voters with pre-poll promises.
In its post, the BJP listed reasons as it claimed AAP’s “hypocrisy.” These included:
- “Who himself and his grandmother were not happy with the construction of Lord Shri Ram’s temple.”
- “Who opened liquor shops outside temples and gurudwaras.”
- “Whose entire politics was anti-Hindu and anti-Sanatan.”
The BJP’s remarks came after AAP organised a ‘Sanatan Seva Samiti’ event, attended by leaders from both AAP and the BJP’s temple cell, “Mandir Prakoshth.” During the event, AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal announced a new scheme promising a monthly honorarium of Rs 18,000 for saints and priests.
Speaking at the event, Kejriwal said, “We and the Aam Aadmi Party have had the good fortune of honouring those who are always engaged in the service of Sanatan Dharma and God.”
The announcement comes ahead of the Delhi assembly elections on February 5. The ‘pujari-granthi samman rashi’ scheme promises Rs 18,000 per month to temple priests and granthis, mirroring the honourarium already provided to Muslim clergy or Maulvis under the Delhi Waqf Board.
Under the existing Waqf Board scheme, Imams receive Rs 17,000 per month, and muezzins are paid Rs 16,000. AAP’s new initiative seeks to address criticism of favoritism by extending similar benefits to Hindu religious leaders.
The BJP, however, dismissed the move as opportunistic. “Now that the elections have come, he remembered the priests and the glands?” the saffron party questioned.
