Citing the work of his government in Delhi over the past three-and-a-half-years, Aam Aadmi Party convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday appealed to those who have benefited from the projects to donate to the party.
Launching the party’s fundraising campaign ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Mr. Kejriwal appealed to those who were happy with the state of Delhi government schools, parents who had received refunds of excess fees from private schools, consumers whose electricity bills have reduced and patients who had been treated at government hospitals and Mohalla Clinics to “donate at least ₹100 per month”. He added that those who had not benefited directly, but appreciated the work of the AAP government should also donate.
Take the pledge
Apart from appealing to Delhiites, the party also launched a national-level helpline for potential donors to call. The party workers and leaders, including Mr. Kejriwal, present at the event at Talkatora Stadium here were all asked to pledge how much they would donate and get five other people to donate as well. Mr. Kejriwal said he would be giving ₹10,000 a month, while his wife and daughter would be giving ₹5,000 a month and his father ₹500 a month.
Hits out at BJP
“By donating, you are not doing me or the AAP a favour. You will be contributing to nation-building,” the Chief Minister said, adding that there are many elections lined up in the next two years and the “party does not have money”.
Hitting out at the BJP, he said the Central government was “running into losses”, while the BJP was “maalamaal” or rich.
“Till now, we have presented four budgets of a total of ₹2 lakh crore. If I had asked the contractors of projects for 1% for the party fund, we would have had ₹2,000 crore and we would not have had to be here today. But, then you wouldn’t have had lower electricity rates or Mohalla Clinics,” he said.
Earlier in the event, AAP leader and Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and AAP Delhi convener Gopal Rai, all appealed for small donations from the public.
Addressing party workers, Mr. Singh said, “Don’t be ashamed to ask for donations. We are not asking for ourselves.”
A party worker attending the event, Lakshmi Maurya, a resident of Old Delhi, said there was a need for the party to reach out to Delhiites. “The party is doing so much for us, so we should also do this [raising funds],” she said.
