The Aam Aadmi Party is in no mood to move on from the issue of Delhi deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s arrest. Continuing the party’s attempt to project Sisodia’s arrest as proof of the BJP government’s anti-education stance, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal trained guns directly at the Prime Minister by saying that the day Sisodia was arrested he understood how important it is for the country to have a “well educated Prime Minister”.
“If the PM was well educated then he would not worry about which political party a person like Manish Sisodia belonged to, and would pick a person of his qualities to become the Education Minister of the country and give him the responsibility to fix the 10 lakh government schools in the country,” said Kejriwal speaking at a massive roadshow in Madhya Pradesh.
“Only if the PM is educated will he realise the importance of providing good quality education to the children of the nation,” he added.
He further pointed out that if the PM was indeed well-educated then he would have good knowledge of economics and would not be fooled into carrying out an exercise like demonetization.
Kejriwal also highlighted that the exercise was carried out in the name of rooting out corruption, and forced the citizens of the country to stand in long queues, but the problem of corruption still persists.
The Delhi CM also said that a well-educated PM would have a better understanding of science and technology and would not ask the citizens of the nation to stand on their terraces and balconies to bang plates to defeat COVID-19.
Hectic campaigning in Madhya Pradesh
Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann have been regularly campaigning in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh targeting the Shivraj Singh Chauhan government on corruption, and promising better civic amenities, electricity, and education.
Kejriwal along with Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann held a massive roadshow in Madhya Padesh’s Bhopal. The state will be witnessing assembly elections later this year.
“Madhya Pradesh wants to change, earlier there was no alternative, now you have the option to vote for AAP. Singrauli gave a trailer by electing AAP’s first Mayor in MP, bring us to power in assembly elections and complete the whole picture,” said Kejriwal.
While highlighting some scams of the Madhya Pradesh state government, including the Vyapam scam, Katni Hawala scam, and WCD Anganwadi scam, he condemned Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allowing his party to indulge in corruption and instead arrest “honest leaders” like Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain.
He urged the people of Madhya Pradesh to vote for the AAP, promising to end the buying and selling of MLAs, provide free electricity, and improve education. Kejriwal also emphasised that the voters of Madhya Pradesh are tired of the current BJP government and want a change, saying,
He said that the residents of the state are angry with the current Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is popularly also referred to as “maama”. In 2018, the people of Madhya Pradesh gave a mandate against BJP. Once again the BJP bought MLAs and managed to form their government in the state, said Kejriwal. He added that the voters of MP are tired as despite voting against the incumbent CM, he went on to sit on the throne.
AAP’s Chief Minister of Punjab Bhagwant Mann drew similarities between the problems ailing Madhya Pradesh and Punjab. He emphasised that the country is blessed with natural and human resources, but the lack of honest and effective politicians is stalling its growth.
Mann reminded the people of Madhya Pradesh how they had voted for Congress in the last elections, but the party that came to power was BJP. He also attacked the Congress and called it “the party not for change, but for exchange,” citing how its ministers used the party’s name to get elected and later joined BJP. He urged the people to think about how these parties view the voters and their role.
The senior AAP leader summarised the plan of BJP and Congress as: “Hum do, hamare do (we two, our two).” Mann said the Congress and BJP are both complicit in the scams by corrupt big businesses, like Adani and Ambani. He asked: What do small traders gain from such politics?” He attacked PM Narendra Modi for never taking accountability for his poorly researched decisions forced on the people at midnight, like the GST and demonetisation which caused a lot of suffering for the people and even several deaths.
He said that the people do not need such policies that are severely lacking in homework, and instead need a capable and experienced person like Shri Arvind Kejriwal, who has a track record of providing a host of free services to the public while simultaneously enriching the state revenue.
The Punjab CM accused the central government of impinging upon the rights of states in India, highlighting the delay in the payment of GST dues to the state governments, leading to cash flow problems for the latter. He said that Punjab is due funds of 9000 crores from the centre, in the absence of which it is not able to develop mandis and their accessibility by roads.
Mann set the stage for AAP’s victory in the upcoming MP elections. He asserted that AAP is the only party that truly fights for the people and their rights, and not just for power. He called upon the people of MP to rally behind AAP and vote for a better future for themselves and their children.