NEW DELHI: Keeping quiet and not fighting for what you have promised to the public is not politics, Delhi's Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said today.
Sisodia made the comments during a panel discussion on the topic "From Gladiators to Catalysts: Can politicians reinvent themselves?" at the ongoing "MindMine Summit".
"We are often blamed for everyday fights in politics, but we have to fight because we are not allowed to perform with ease.
We have to become catalysts of change to ensure that we deliver what we have promised to the public, and if it requires fighting, of course we will fight," he said.
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra, who also debated the issue at the summit, said a skillful politician cannot afford to chose between "a gladiator or a catalyst", and he or she has to play both the roles.
"Who knows better than a spokesperson about being a gladiator, but this is the beauty of democracy.
There was an era when people were vying for blood, but people are now vying for answers to their questions.
"I believe politicians cannot be just catalysts or gladiators, they have to be 'gladiating' catalysts...Not just a change but a quantum change is needed," Patra said.
Congress leader Deependra Singh Hooda said democracy is not strengthened by raising slogans of making country free from a particular party.
"We are competitors.
We should make our point.
People should assess us on the basis of our deeds, but politics should be only competitive in nature and not become a blood-baying sport," he said.