Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday accused the Congress, AAP and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of vitiating the atmosphere of the Capital by “inciting the youth and minorities” to run riot.
“The campaign for Delhi elections begins today, it begins now. It is for you to decide whether you want a government which works for five years or one which only does dharna pradarshan [sit-in protests]...there are as many as 112 Central government schemes which the Kejriwal government is stopping you from getting the benefits of,” Mr. Shah said at his first public meeting in Matiala Assembly constituency, adding: “We will make Delhi the best capital in the world... For 15 years, you gave the Congress a chance and five years ago, the people reposed faith in Kejriwal’s party, but they [AAP] forgot their promises.”
At public meetings in west Delhi’s Matiala and Nangloi Jat Assembly constituencies, with a roadshow through the Uttam Nagar constituency in between, Mr. Shah also alleged that former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, Mr. Kejriwal and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan “spoke the same language” and questioned their association behind the scenes, in addition to raking up the issues related tothe amended citizenship Act, the Ram Mandir, Article 370 and Jawaharlal Nehru University.
“Just today, [Deputy CM] Manish Sisodia said he is with the people of Shaheen Bagh. If they come to power, will Delhi be safe? Do those who want a riot to occur have the right to be in power? I have been observing that Rahul Gandhi and Kejriwal says the same thing that Imran Khan says... I want to ask them what their relationship actually is behind the scenes,” Mr. Shah added.
‘Unfulfilled promises’
He said AAP had promised to open 500 schools, 20 new colleges but not a single one was opened. It had promised to install 15 lakh CCTV cameras, procure 5,000 new DTC buses, give employment to 8 lakh youth but did none of these. Mr. Shah alleged that the Delhi governmentcould not even regularise the services of the employees working on contract. Similarly, he said, neither the promise of free Wi-Fi was fulfilled nor the promise of enacting a Jan Lokpal. “You became CMon the back of the Anna [Hazare] movement but after coming to power, did nothing in this connection. Prime Minister Narendra Modi got the Bill on Lokpal passed in Parliament,” he alleged.
“Kejriwal had said Modi ji does not allow him to work and now he is saying that ‘ paanch saal khoob kiya kaam, lage raho Kejriwal ’. I say Dilli ka peecha chhod do Kejriwal,” he added.
Mr. Keriwal has not won any election in the last five years, including the corporation and Lok Sabha elections, he said.
The Chief Minister and the Congress “never wanted a Ram Mandir” but the BJP and Modi ji have “made it possible” and would ensure that, over the next four months, a “towering Ram Mandir” is built.
“Should people who raise slogans asking for the disintegration of India be allowed to roam free? Should refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh not be given Indian citizenship? When we spoke about doing so, people like Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi tried to put stumbling block in our way,” he alleged.
