Delhi polls will decide battle of ideologies: Kejriwal

“In simple terms, these elections are about deciding how taxpayers’ money should be spent and on whom it should be spent,” Arvind Kejriwal said.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said the upcoming Delhi assembly elections will present voters with a battle of ideologies which will decide whether electors agree with taxpayer money being spent for “freebies to corporate friends” — which he claimed is the template followed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) — or to provide services to the people under what he called the “Kejriwal model”.

AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal. (ANI)

The BJP hit back, stating that these elections are a referendum — between false dreams and true development.

Delhi goes to polls on February 5, with the results to be announced on February 8.

Speaking at a press conference at the AAP headquarters, Kejriwal said the upcoming elections have pitted the ideologies of his party against those of the BJP.

“In simple terms, these elections are about deciding how taxpayers’ money should be spent and on whom it should be spent... Even the poorest man pays taxes through GST and other taxes... These elections will decide how this money should be spent. One model is focuses on providing services and ensuring public welfare like free electricity, education, health care and free bus travel to benefit the common man... The other model uses public funds to waive loans worth thousands of crores for its close billionaire friends and associates,” the AAP chief said.

Referring to various taxes collected as the “Ganga of government money”, Kejriwal said that the people of Delhi have to decide whether this river should go towards public welfare or be spent for “400 billionaires”.

“The people of Delhi have to decide for the whole country whether Delhi’s welfare measures should be provided in the whole country, or whether they should stop in Delhi as well,” he said.

“The Kejriwal model is to use this money for public welfare... The BJP model gives people’s money to its billionaire friends as loans, and then writes off those loans in two to three years,” he added.

The AAP chief said that the various welfare schemes in Delhi introduced or announced by the AAP — free power and water, free bus travel for women, and a monthly dole of ₹2,100 for all women voters — cumulatively provide benefits of around ₹25,000 per month for each household.

“We have calculated that our free power schemes provides benefits of ₹4,000-5,000 per month, free education saves ₹10,000 for two kids, ₹2500 for free bus travel... In total, these welfare schemes provide benefit of nearly ₹25,000 per month for each household in Delhi,” he said.

He added that Delhi’s poor should decide if they can carry an additional burden of ₹25,000 per month. “The poor will have to leave Delhi...The AAP government is necessary for living in Delhi,” he said.

Kejriwal accused the BJP of planning to end all welfare schemes initiated by the AAP in Delhi, if it were to come to power in the national capital. He also hit out at the BJP for labelling welfare measures as “freebies”, alleging that the BJP is trying to “create guilt among the middle class” while itself offering massive concessions to big businesses.

“They say freebies are dangerous for the country, but entire money is being spent on 400-500 friends. Is that not a freebie?” he said.

Dismissing Kejriwal’s remarks, the BJP said the coming elections are a clear choice between an “anarchic” government or a “double-engine” government.

“These Delhi elections are like a referendum for Delhi residents to choose between false dreams and true development. They are an opportunity for the people to choose to continue with the corrupt and anarchic government of Arvind Kejriwal, or to choose to elect a double-engine development government headed by the BJP,” Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said.

“Rather than development, Kejriwal is better known for corruption & development failures… Kejriwal should note that Delhi residents have made up their mind to make 2025 the year of development by electing a BJP government,” he added.