NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for opposing the free Wi-Fi scheme announced by the Delhi government. The remark came in response to East Delhi MP Gautam Gambhir’s statement, calling the announcement a ploy by the ruling party to engage in ‘vote bank politics’.
“We will expose BJP’s negative politics and anti-people mindset and statements. They have opposed every single welfare scheme announced by the government, even resorting to mobilising negative campaigns. It is clear that they are scared of defeat in the Assembly elections,” AAP’s national spokesperson Raghav Chaddha said.
On Thursday, Chief Minister announced that 100 Wi-Fi hotspots would be opened across the national capital, enabling people to avail mobile internet for free. He said that the hotspots would be opened on December 16. Free Wi-Fi was a key poll promise of the AAP ahead of the last Assembly elections. “Ours is a progressive party, which doesn’t give much credence to old- school thoughts. It’s clear that they (BJP) are against a progressive idea of opening Wi-Fi hotspots,” AAP leader Atishi said.
Asked to comment on the CM’s announcement, the cricketer-turned-politician said, “The chief minister has lied to the public yet again. He has basically repeated what he said four-and-half years ago. This is nothing but an attempt at vote-bank politics ahead of the Assembly elections.” Raising the pitch of the political slugfest over the free Wi-Fi scheme, the AAP posed five questions to the BJP — Why is the BJP opposing a welfare scheme such as this?
Why is it that the BJP is not supporting a move that would make Delhi a step closer to being a smart city? By opposing this scheme, is the BJP trying to peddle and promote its non-progressive views? Doesn’t the BJP want the city’s youth and poor to derive the benefits of the free Wi-Fi scheme? Is the BJP scared that free Wi-Fi would enable people to reject its misleading propaganda?