Arvind Kejriwal, the activist and crusader, (“All guns blazing”, Feb. 10) has not shown any comfort with the grammar of Delhi politics since he became Chief Minister. His party has been pulling stunt after stunt, giving short shrift to governance. He seems to forget that he leads a minority government which is seeking outside support from the Congress.
His party has constantly been in the news for the wrong reasons — the Somnath Bharti episode, the remarks on Kerala nurses, and so on. Mr. Kejriwal should realise that the general elections are fast approaching and that his political career will wilt if he fails to make good on his promised 18-point agenda.
Pramod Rao Errabelli,
New Delhi
The AAP government has presented itself as a relentless battler against corruption. It is important to note that targeting top politicians and former government officials has not been their sole agenda. With the introduction of the ‘anti-corruption’ helpline, there has been a sharp decrease in corruption at the lower levels; it has instilled fear in the minds of touts and the local groups that were indulging in acts of petty corruption. I disagree that governance benefits for the people of Delhi are incidental to the AAP’s larger agenda.
New nursery school admission guidelines have been introduced, several visits have been made to check the functioning of government schools, the Delhi Health Minister has issued guidelines to city hospitals, CAG audit is under way to check alleged corruption in discoms, and the AAP MLAs have been more responsive than those of the previous regime to complaints in their locality.
J. Amal Anand,
New Delhi
The enthusiasm of the Delhi Chief Minister seems to be reaching a crescendo. After producing a list of corrupt politicians that reads like a who’s who of political leaders in the country, his party filed an FIR against no less a person than the former Chief Minister of Delhi. The Congress seems to have given Mr. Kejriwal a long rope in spite of the taunts he has thrown against the party, daring it to withdraw support and enable him to role-play a martyr and take to the streets as is his wont. He would be well-advised to rein in his aggression lest he court a debacle earlier than anticipated.
M. Ramankutty,
Tripunithura
Sometimes I wonder whether the AAP is doing its utmost to provoke the Congress into triggering the fall of the Delhi government. It appears that Mr. Kejriwal has set his sights on “higher goals” and is looking to acquire the image of a martyr to be put to use during the parliamentary elections. Just how successful he will be is not apparent yet, but it is slowly becoming clear that the political space he is currently enjoying is actually that vacated by the UPA-II’s maladministration and that the force of his leadership is not necessarily the cause for it.
J. Akshobhya,
Mysore
For the sake of India Inc., its political stability and good governance, the Congress and the AAP must resolve the corruption issue, settle their differences and formulate a practical plan to present a united and credible front to the nation. They must use their partnership to strengthen the fight for secular principles. If the AAP government fails to deliver on its promise to usher in core-level changes in the system — from the Centre to the gram panchayat — it will be in danger of being deemed a mere flash-in-the-pan movement that exploited a manufactured political mood and turned a damp squib.
Rani Williams,
Chennai
