Exactly one year after the Aam Aadmi Party was launched, the party has formally launched its election symbol, the “broom”, which it insists symbolises cleansing of polity of the country. The symbol was launched at a Valmiki Colony on Mandir Marg which falls in the New Delhi Assembly constituency from where Arvind Kejriwal has announced that he would be contesting the election against Congress leader and Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.
The symbol was launched at a Valmiki Colony because more than 90 per cent of Delhi’s sanitation workers come from this community. Soon after the launch, AAP leaders and volunteers undertook a cleanliness drive in the area.
Armed with a ‘broom’, Arvind Kejriwal, Shanti Bhushan, Prashant Bhushan, Kumar Vishwas, Manish Sisodia and Yogendra Yadav went around the colony cleaning the area.
While launching the symbol, Mr. Kejriwal said there are 162 tainted politicians in Parliament and 25 MLAs in the Delhi Assembly who have serious charges against them. He asked all party volunteers to indulge in shramdaan for two hours every week in their locality.
“The ‘broom’ symbolises that the time has come to clean the politics of the country. The Aam Aadmi Party has vowed not to give a ticket to any tainted candidate. The ‘broom’ will become our weapon from now on. We will fight shoulder to shoulder with this community to clean this country,” said Mr. Kejriwal while cleaning the colony.
“Several independent surveys conducted by C-Voter, Total TV and CSDS have indicated that the AAP would be a major player in the forthcoming elections. This means that people have started to perceive the AAP as the much desired political alternative,” he added.
