At a town hall meeting for Gujarati auto drivers on Monday, Arvind Kejriwal once more launched a volley of insults at the BJP, accusing them of exchanging legislators for political favours. “The auto drivers in Delhi should get a lot of the credit for our victory in the election; they adore me. The same thing is true in Punjab.” The Delhi chief minister spoke in Ahmedabad, promising cheaper electricity and better education for the next generation. “I urge you people to spread the word about our work in Gujarat too, just like they did in the national capital,” he said.
“Do you want this free revdi or not?” he further asked, referring to the freebie dig used by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during one of the mega events in Uttar Pradesh a couple of months ago. “The power rates in Gujarat are the highest in the country,” he added. “Won’t it be a relief to get free electricity? Elect us and you will get free units from March 1.”
The improved state of government schools in the nation’s capital and the subsidised power in Delhi and Punjab have long been sources of pride for the Aam Aadmi Party. However, PM Modi’s comment on revri—a cheap and widely consumed sweet savoury in north India—had sparked a contentious exchange between the leaders of the BJP and the AAP. During his speech, PM Modi urged the youth to choose progress over freebies.
“Everybody likes free revri.. politicians too… CM gets 4,000 units of power. Why can’t the public get 300 units?” Kejriwal said on Monday, adding that all women in Gujarat would be given 1,000 in their accounts if the AAP was elected to power.
The chief minister added, “We don’t spend 50 crore to buy MLAs. We stick to honest means. We don’t transfer money to Swiss bank accounts. We use public money for the public interest.”
Earlier, in a tweet, he had taken a sharp aim at the rival party, saying: “They could not give you 24*7 electricity after ruling for 27 years, then why should you give them another five years? We have delivered this in a matter of five years.”