NEW DELHI: AAP supremo and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday responded sharply to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s criticism of the AAP-led Delhi government. Kejriwal dismissed the allegations, saying that the BJP-led central government has failed to deliver on its promises while the AAP government has worked tirelessly for the people of Delhi.
Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal said, “Today, PM Modi gave a speech of 43 minutes, in which he abused the people of Delhi and the government they chose for around 39 minutes”.
“In 2015, the people of Delhi chose two governments—BJP at the Centre and AAP in Delhi. It has been 10 years now. If you ask me to list what the AAP government has accomplished in these 10 years, even 2-3 hours would not be sufficient,” he added.
Former Delhi CM also fired back at PM Modi’s “sheesh mahal” remark, “One who builds a house worth Rs 2,700 crore for himself, who travels in an airplane worth Rs 8,400 crore, and who wears a Rs 10 lakh suit, talking about ‘sheesh mahal’ doesn’t suit his mouth. I don’t indulge in personal accusations or the politics of abuses.”
Kejriwal also pointed out AAP’s achievements in governance, contrasting them with the BJP’s record. He accused the central government of failing to fulfill its promises, particularly regarding housing for the underprivileged.
“In 2020, PM Modi made several promises to the people of Delhi. The BJP’s ‘Sankalp Patra’ stated that everyone in Delhi would get a pucca house by 2022. But since then, the Centre has handed over keys to only 1,700 houses. Before that, they handed over 3,000 houses in Kalkaji. So, they have built 4,700 houses in five years, while Delhi has 4 lakh jhuggis and 15 lakh people needing homes,” Kejriwal said.
He further accused the BJP of being anti-poor, saying, “The BJP is the enemy of the poor. They have rendered over two lakh people homeless by demolishing slums in Delhi. Had they worked in these 10 years, maybe they wouldn’t need to abuse the people of Delhi so much today. One who works doesn’t abuse; one who doesn’t work contests elections on the basis of abuses.”
AAP supremo Kejriwal’s reaction came after PM Modi’s address at inauguration of multiple development projects in Delhi.
With assembly elections approaching in Delhi, AAP and BJP leaders are seen in the war of words. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to the AAP government as an “aapda” (disaster) for the national capital.
“On the one hand, the Centre is making a lot of efforts; on the other, the Union Territory government stands for brazen lies,” PM Modi said, accusing AAP of corruption in sectors like education, pollution control, and housing.
Calling for AAP’s defeat, PM also raised a slogan, “‘Aapda’ ko nahi sahenge, badal kar rahenge (we will not tolerate ‘aapda,’ we will remove it),” and urged voters to usher in a new era of governance under the BJP.
