Vote for AAP if you want development: Kejriwal
The AAP supremo promises to set up a PGIMER-like hospital in Jalandhar, besides cleaning landfill sites and building roads for better connectivity
JALANDHAR : Ahead of highstakes May 10 Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday appealed to people of the constituency to vote for his party if they want development, claiming the Congress did nothing for them in 60 years.
Addressing a gathering along with Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann in favour of party candidate Sushil Kumar Rinku in Jalandhar, Kejriwal said: “We are doing good work and with honesty. Vote for us in place of the Congress. Give us one chance.” People of Jalandhar voted for the Congress for the past 60 years, but the party had done nothing for their welfare, the Delhi CM said
“If you vote for the Congress, what benefit will you get? In Punjab, it is our government, we have to get the work done. If you vote for the Congress, they will fight and indulge in ‘tu tu mein mein’. If you want fights, vote for them, but if you have to get all your works done, get roads built, landfills cleaned, then give one chance to the AAP,” Kejriwal said. The AAP government of Punjab has fulfilled all its major guarantees in just one year,” he said. The AAP leader touched upon his party’s poll promise of giving 300 units of free power every month to residents of Punjab, saying parties like the BJP, Congress and SAD used to mock it for this. Kejriwal said just within three months of coming to power “we have showed them how this was done”.
“I was told by Punjab finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema that money is coming now under every head. Money used to come earlier too, but all this used to go into their pockets, into the Swiss bank accounts of leaders of these parties. Now, all this money is going into the government treasury. And with this money, your electricity bills are becoming zero,” he said.
He added 28,000 Punjab youths have been given government jobs during the past one year and in the coming years, several thousand more jobs will be given. Kejriwal further said there is no big government hospital in Jalandhar. “We will set up a big hospital like PGIMER,” he said, adding landfill sites will be cleaned and roads built.
He said blue (ration) card holders were facing some problems, as cards of some beneficiaries have got deleted by mistake, but he assured that everyone will get ration.
Addressing the gathering, chief minister Bhagwant Mann said this election is not going to change or form a government, but casting your vote to the AAP will create history.
“I raised the issues of people from 2014-22 in Parliament, then you elected me as your chief minister. Now, all you have to do is to vote for the AAP candidate, I’ll teach Sushil Rinku how to raise issues of the people and how to get the works of Punjab done there,” he said.
“Victory in Jalandhar will encourage the government and we will work harder to make Punjab ‘rangla’ again,” he said.
Cong flays AAP supremo
Reacting to Kejriwal’s appeal asking people to vote for the AAP to get their works done, leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa said this showed nervousness of the AAP, especially Kejriwal.
The United Punjab Party (UPP), formed by Christian representatives, has announced to support the AAP in the bypoll. Party candidate Surjit Thapar will withdraw in favour of the AAP nominee.