‘Was impressed by him’: BJP recalls Kejriwal’s political beginning in fresh attack

NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday targeted Aam Aadmi Party on Sunday, accusing it of failing to fulfil the promises on which it rode to come to power in Delhi and Punjab.
During a press conference, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that AAP convener and former Delhi chief minister is diverting attention when asked about the promises made in the previous assembly elections.
“In 2020, I think the Delhi Assembly elections took place on 8th February. On 19th January, Arvind Kejriwal gave 10 guarantees including 24-hour free electricity supply, Delhi to be free from high tension electric wires, better healthcare for all, government schools, more than 500 km of the metro network, free buses for women and students, control in air pollution and cleaning of Yamuna river and more than 2 crore trees will be planted. Yamuna River is 500 times more polluted than its prescribed level,” Puri said.
“People come and make such statements and when they are asked questions, they try to divert attention,” he added.
Puri also pointed to the situation in Punjab, where AAP made several promises in the 2022 assembly elections. Puri alleged that Kejriwal’s claims of bringing “world-class achievements” to Punjab, much like those he had purportedly brought to Delhi, have also fallen short.
“Arvind Kejriwal is a very well-known, I want to use the word commodity, but I will say he is a very well-known politician. When he started his political journey, there were some of us who were present at Ramlila Maidan who truly understood that this was going to become a big movement against corruption. We were also a little impressed by his personality that he wears a muffler, sits in the front seat of Wagon R, and swears that he will never join politics…In Punjab, he said that in 2022, we will bring the world-class achievements that he has done in Delhi,” Puri said.
“I just want to briefly mention the 2 guarantees that he had given in Punjab that our women would be given Rs 1,000 per month. We are in 2025 and the same women had to come to Delhi to make their voices heard. Secondly, he said that he would make Punjab drug-free. After the formation of the AAP government in Punjab, we need to have a separate session about the energy that has come to the drug lords there,” he added.
The Delhi assembly elections are scheduled for February 5, with results to be declared on February 8. AAP, which secured 62 out of 70 seats in 2020, is aiming for its third consecutive full term in office.