Ready to back any party except BJP that supports full statehood for Delhi: Kejriwal
New Delhi, May 11: Delhi Chief Minister and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal said post-elections they would be ready to back any party, except the BJP, that supports full statehood for the national capital.
The AAP national convenor, in an interview to PTI, said their only aim is to stop the Modi-Shah duo from coming back to power and for that they will support any party.
"We will support those who grant full statehood to Delhi. Our only aim is to stop the Modi-Shah duo from coming back to power. We have absolutely no problem with whoever comes at the Centre," Kejriwal said.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has made the demand of full statehood for Delhi its poll plank. The party says that a slew of issues, including expansion of health and education infrastructure, remains unresolved as it does not lie in the hands of the Delhi government.
Kejriwal claimed that people are "extremely happy" with the work of the AAP in Delhi, especially in the fields of education, health, water, electricity, road, sewage.
"But the people of Delhi are also seeing how hurdles are being created in the work of the Delhi government because it is not a full state. People this time will vote to remove those hurdles from the path of the Delhi government," he said.
The chief minister said once the demand of full statehood is realised, it would help in fast-tracking development works in the national capital.
If Delhi gets full statehood, the city government would be able to deliver a thousand times more than what it has done till now, he claimed.
Kejriwal alleged that the BJP MPs are not "loyal" to the people of Delhi.
"People in Delhi should think that if all the seven candidates of the BJP win then they will not be loyal to the people of the national capital. If tomorrow, metro fare rises your BJP MPs cannot raise their voices, they cannot raise their voice against sealing. AAP is Delhi's party so if something happens to the people of Delhi then AAP will raise voice for the rights of people in Parliament," he said.
Kejriwal said the voice against the Centre's "wrong" policies could be raised only when Delhi MPs are from a different party than those in power in the Centre.
People of Delhi would benefit more by electing AAP candidates as they can raise issues faced by city residents in Parliament more effectively than the national parties like the BJP and the Congress, he said.
The chief minister claimed there is a "very strong" anti-incumbency against the BJP in Delhi as its MPs did nothing for the people here.
The BJP had won all the Lok Sabha seats in Delhi in the 2014 general elections.
Giving individual examples, Kejriwal said there is a lot of "negativity" against incumbent BJP MP from New Delhi Meenakshi Lekhi, who, he claimed has done nothing for the constituency.
"She insulted the people of her constituency so people want to defeat her," he said.
About Delhi BJP chief and its North East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari, Kejriwal said, "He has done nothing except dancing and singing in the last four years."
The works of Pravesh Sahib Singh Verma, who is an MP from West Delhi, is also being questioned by the people of his constituency, he claimed, adding that in South Delhi people are "tired of hooliganism" of BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri.
The AAP national convener claimed that BJP candidate from North West Delhi seat Hansraj Hans would lose comprehensively.
Appealing to the people to vote for ending the "obstructions created by the BJP-led central government", Kejriwal accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of not delivering any of the promises made by him in the run up to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
"Modiji cannot say I built schools, hospitals, brought down electricity tariff, ensured drinking water supply. He failed in every sector. He has not delivered anything," he alleged.
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TN Assembly elections: Eight-month pregnant homemaker wins Thiru Vi Ka Nagar seat for TVK
Chennai (PTI): Before giving birth, she had already delivered a mandate—a symbol of hope for Thiru Vi Ka Nagar.
Echoing Delhi’s 2013 “common citizen” political churn associated with the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), an eight-month-pregnant homemaker, M R Pallavi, has been elected as an MLA from Chennai’s Thiru Vi Ka Nagar constituency, emerging as one of the notable first-time faces of the Vijay-led TVK in the recently held Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
In the narrow lanes of Thiru Vi Ka Nagar, a steady stream of media personnel has been making their way to Pallavi’s residence—a scene reminiscent of the result day in Delhi when journalists thronged the modest home of Rakhi Birla, who had won from Mangolpuri on an AAP ticket.
Pallavi, 36, a homemaker educated up to class XII, defeated the DMK candidate K S Ravichandran by a margin of 22,333 votes in the reserved Thiru Vi Ka Nagar Assembly constituency.
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam emerged as the single largest party by winning 108 seats, while DMK and AIADMK got 59 and 47, respectively.
Pallavi’s victory has drawn attention due to her personal circumstances. She campaigned extensively while eight months pregnant, going door-to-door to reach voters.
According to local accounts, she even fainted once during the campaign but continued her outreach.
She has not spoken to the media following her victory, as doctors have advised her to rest. Her husband, Rajesh, briefly recounted her campaign efforts.
A self-professed admirer of actor-turned-politician Vijay, Pallavi joined TVK soon after its formation and is now among its first-time legislators.
Doctors have advised her to be hospitalised around May 20, as she is expecting her second child. Ahead of that, voters in Thiru Vi Ka Nagar have entrusted her with representing them in the state Assembly.
Political observers say the rise of candidates like Pallavi signals a possible shift in Tamil Nadu’s political landscape, with voters backing a new party and candidates from non-traditional backgrounds.
