AHMEDABAD: Fresh after the huge victory in the recently held assembly elections in Punjab, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convener and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal is betting big on Gujarat where assembly elections are slated to be held in December this year.
Kejriwal and Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann arrived in Ahmedabad on Friday night on a two-day visit for a roadshow, “Tiranga Yatra.”
During the day, Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann held a mega roadshow in Eastern Ahmedabad. The 1.5 km long roadshow covered the Nikol and Bapunagar area of Ahmedabad, dominated by Patidar, Hindi-speaking people, and laborers.
Kejriwal began his speech in Gujarati asking, "Kem Cho?" (how are you) "Majama?" (fine).
He said that his aim is to end corruption in the country. He claimed that Delhi is free of corruption and claimed that he has not come to Gujarat to do politics.
“BJP is ruling Gujarat for 25 years but corruption is still prevalent in the state. I have not come here to defeat BJP or Congress but I came to win Gujarat and Gujaratis. Give the Aam Aadmi Party a chance. These people ruled for 25 years but were not able to do anything. Delhi and Punjab gave us a chance. Give us a chance in Gujarat. If you don't like it, you can party our party out in the next elections after five years," he averred.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mane said the question paper leak is common in Gujarat. This has to be stopped. Education is sold here, he claimed.
He further asked the crowd, “Where does the lotus flower grow?" and replied himself saying, "in swamps, a broom (Zaddo) is used to clean the swamp, so swamps have to be cleaned. The swamp of corruption has to be cleared."
Reacting to the AAP roadshow, Cabinet Minister Jitu Waghani said “Gujarat welcomes every guest, But the people of Gujarat always support the BJP.
Earlier in the day, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Panjab CM Bhagwant Mann visited the Sabarmati Ashram and took a tour of Hriday Kunj, the place where Mahatma Gandhi used to stay on the Sabarmati Ashram premises, and also visited museums there and bowed down before the statue of Gandhiji. They also spun the customary wheel kept at the Ashram.
Talking to Media, Kejriwal said, "This is my first visit to Sabarmati Ashram after becoming Delhi chief minister. Earlier, when I was an activist, I had visited this place several times." "Whenever I come here, I get inner peace," he said.
Bhagwant Mann said, "I come from a land of freedom Fighters-Punjab. I got to see a lot here. Gandhi Ji's letters and the various movements he spearheaded. Charkha is part of every other household in Punjab. My mother and grandmother also use it. I have seen the Charkha being used since my childhood. We are nationalist people and we love the nation. This is my first visit to Gujarat since I became Punjab CM."
AAP leaders' visit to the BJP-ruled Gujarat is being seen as an attempt to prepare the groundwork for their party ahead of the Gujarat Assembly elections. This visit is also crucial for the AAP members to assess party strengths and work on faults ahead of the elections. On Sunday, Kejriwal is expected to meet various political and social leaders in the state to discuss key strategies. He is also scheduled to visit the Swaminarayan temple on Sunday.