Two days after he walked out of prison on bail, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced that he would resign from his post in two days. He called for an early Assembly election in the national capital, allowing the people of Delhi to decide if he is honest.
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“I am going to resign from the Chief Minister’s post, and I will not sit in the Chief Minister’s chair until the public delivers its verdict on whether Kejriwal is honest.” he told workers at the Aam Aadmi Party’s office on Sunday. “A meeting will be called with all Aam Aadmi Party MLAs to choose a new leader who will serve as Chief Minister until elections are held.”
His announcement, which took both the public and political circles by surprise, comes less than 48 hours after he was granted bail by the Supreme Court, following nearly six months in jail in connection with the Delhi liquor policy case, currently under investigation by Central agencies. Mr. Kejriwal called for the Delhi election to be held alongside the Maharashtra election scheduled for November, rather than waiting until February 2025
‘Conspiracy’
The BJP termed his resignation plan a “conspiracy to hide the blemishes of corruption,” arguing that Delhi voters had already rejected Mr. Kejriwal’s plea for a certificate of honesty in the recent Lok Sabha election, where the BJP won all seven seats in the capital.
Mr. Kejriwal explained that he chose to resign now, rather than during his time in jail, in order to “save democracy” and resist the BJP’s attempts to break the AAP by purchasing MLAs and arresting Opposition Chief Ministers. “I want to appeal to all non-BJP Chief Ministers in the country: if the Prime Minister files a fake case against you and imprisons you, do not resign. Run the government from jail. Do not resign because our Constitution, our country, and our democracy are more important than anything else,” Mr. Kejriwal said.
Deja vu
This is not the first time that Mr. Kejriwal has resigned as Chief Minister. After the 2013 Delhi Assembly election, when the AAP made its debut and came to power with the help of the Congress, Mr. Kejriwal resigned within 49 days and sought re-election. The AAP returned to power in 2015, winning 67 of the 70 seats in the Delhi Assembly.
“I resigned from the post of Chief Minister after remaining in power for 49 days. I resigned for my principles. No one had sought my resignation, I resigned on my own. I left the Chief Minister’s chair on my own. I have no lust for post or money. We only have a passion to do something for the country,” Mr. Kejriwal said.
‘Trial by fire’
He emphasised that he had not entered politics for money or power, but to serve the nation. “When Lord Rama returned from his 14-year exile, Sita had to undergo an agni pariksha [trial by fire]. Today, I have returned from jail, and I am ready to undergo my own agni pariksha,” he added.
In a sharp attack on the Central government, Mr. Kejriwal compared the current BJP-led regime to British colonial rule, referencing the treatment of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh while in prison. “When Bhagat Singh was in jail, the British allowed him to write letters, and they were delivered. But this government is more tyrannical than the British. A letter I wrote on August 15 to the Lieutenant-Governor of Delhi was returned, and I was warned that if I dared to write to L-G Saab again, my family visits would be stopped. Even the British could not have imagined that 75 years after India’s independence, a ruler more cruel and oppressive than them would govern this country,” he said.
Published - September 15, 2024 12:39 pm IST