People throng historic Ramlila Maidan to witness ‘rare event’
NEW DELHI: The historic Ramlila Maidan was decked up with the tricolour and party flags, placards, and posters as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener, Arvind Kejriwal, took the oath as the Chief Minister for the third time. The swearing-in ceremony started with Kejriwal taking the oath first followed by his Deputy Manish Sisodia and the rest of the cabinet ministers including Satyendra Jain, Kailash Gahlot, Rajendra Pal Gautam, Imran Hussain, and Gopal Rai.
The Ramlila Maidan, served as the battleground for the India Against Corruption movement in 2011, holds a special significance for the
AAP. The crowd was dotted with the National Flag, a symbolic representation of the victory of nationalism. Blue and white balloons and caps with the AAP'S signature broom on every cut out and poster could be seen as people came out to support the party.
Excitement was palpable among the party workers and the public which came to support the CM. The packed Ramlila Maidan echoed with patriotic songs with people sporting the painted Tricolour flag on their cheeks and foreheads. Several people donned the traditional AAP cap and sang ‘Bulb jalte nahi muskurate hai, nal ke jal khilkhilate hai, kuyki bill zero aate hain' (bulbs no longer just light up but smile, tap water smile too because there is zero bill).
A poster stating ‘Nayak 2 has come again' was also spotted in the crowd. Keeping the reference to the Bollywood movie Nayak starring Anil Kapoor had the actor on the left and a picture of Kejriwal on the right. A heightened stage was created for the sweraingin ceremony flanked by additional sitting arrangements on either side of the centre stage for roughly 50 people or Dilli ke nirmatas which included teachers, doctors, auto drivers, sanitation workers, fire fighters and many more.
No opposition leaders were invited to the event or CMS of other states, the focus was kept on Delhiites and thousands of residents of the national capital who attended the event.