Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said that the BJP is seeking a brute majority in the Lok Sabha to end reservations, but it will not cross the 250-seat mark.
Addressing a roadshow in the reserved North West Delhi parliamentary seat, Mr. Kejriwal said, “The BJP says it wants 400 seats to accomplish some big things. What are these ‘big things’? They want to end reservations. Don’t think about the heat on May 25. Step out to vote.”
This was his first public outreach for Congress candidates.
AAP and Congress are fighting the election together in Delhi in a 4-3 seat-sharing arrangement. The national capital is scheduled to vote on May 25.
Speaking at the event to support the three Congress candidates, the AAP chief said going by his conversations with people across the country, the BJP’s Lok Sabha tally will drop substantially this time.
“Their [BJP’s] seats are decreasing in Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, U.P., Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Punjab. They are going to be eliminated from Delhi. Then how are they forming the government?”
Since his release from jail last week, Mr. Kejriwal has held several public events, including four roadshows for his party’s nominees in Delhi.
Following the event in North West Delhi, from where the Congress has fielded Udit Raj, the AAP chief held a roadshow in the Chandni Chowk constituency, which is being contested by Jai Prakash Agarwal.
“If you make Jai Prakashji win, I will not have to go to jail. But if you make kamal [the BJP’s election symbol] win, then Kejriwal will go to jail. When you press the button on election day, think about whether you want to send Kejriwal to jail,” the AAP chief said.
“You will not find jhadu [AAP’s election symbol] on the EVM here. I am telling everyone, including AAP members, that they must vote for panja [the Congress’s election symbol],” he added.
A large number of AAP and the Congress supporters could be seen campaigning together in a burst of colours — AAP’s yellow and blue and Congress’s saffron, white, and green — at both rallies.
Nadira Sarkar, a housewife and Congress volunteer, said, “I never thought this day would come.” She was wearing AAP’s yellow and blue scarf.
Ashutosh Sinha, an advocate and Congress volunteer, said, “We have become familiar with AAP’s volunteers. Because our agendas match, the coordination is good. Since Kejriwal has come out of jail, everything has fallen into place.”
‘Oppn. arrogance’
Attacking the AAP-Congress alliance, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the two parties have differing views on most issues.
“With the election progressing towards the final phases, the arrogance of the Opposition alliance has begun to diminish. Once again the BJP is gaining public support,” Mr. Yadav said at a rally in West Delhi while campaigning for the party nominee Kamaljeet Sehrawat.
“It is because of the Modi government’s efforts that Lord Ram is smiling in his temple [at Ayodhya]. Vote for the BJP so that this time Lord Krishna also smiles in his temple in Mathura,” he said.
