Now Ambedkar, Bhagat Singh photos at Delhi govt offices: Kejriwal

A Delhi government official later clarified that the photos of father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi, which are customarily hung up in government offices, will continue to remain there

All Delhi government offices will have photos of only Dr BR Ambedkar, the architect of the Constitution, and of Bhagat Singh, the revolutionary freedom fighter, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Tuesday, adding that no photos of any political leaders will be permitted from now on in these establishments.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal addresses the gathering after hoisting the Tricolour at the Delhi Secretariat on the eve of Republic Day, on Tuesday. (HT)

To be sure, a Delhi government official later clarified that the photos of father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi, which are customarily hung up in government offices, will continue to remain there.

“They (Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh) both adopted contrasting paths, but they had a common goal,” Kejriwal said on Tuesday after hoisting the national tricolour at the Delhi secretariat on the eve of Republic Day.

“Babasaheb struggled a lot throughout his life. Talking about Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein said that generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth. The more I read about Dr Ambedkar, the more I believe that this quote applies to him as well,” Kejriwal said.

He added that the pictures of no political leader, including himself, will be hung up in state government offices. “Now, we will not put up photos of politicians or the CM in Delhi government offices. We will celebrate and take inspiration from these legends (Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh). The Delhi government will walk on the path shown by them, and they will continue to inspire us.”

While Ambedkar is hailed as a Dalit icon, the iconic Bhagat Singh has particular resonance in Punjab, a state where he Aam Aadmi Party is seen as a strong contender in the next month’s assembly polls.

Kejriwal said that, in the eyes of every child, the people of Delhi can see the revolutionary dreams of Babasaheb and Bhagat Singh. “At that age (Bhagat Singh died when he was 23) , a young man thinks of his career, romance and future plans. But, Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh chose to sacrifice his life happily to ensure a better future for the society. Bhagat Singh and Ambedkar dreamt that in a free India everyone will be equal, free of discrimination. They thought of a society where success didn’t depend on your caste or class. We will celebrate and take inspiration from these legends,” he said.

Highlighting his own government’s achievements in the field of education, Kejriwal said that Ambedkar had a dream that every child in the country, rich or poor, must receive a good education. “However, even 75 years after Independence, politicians have not been able to fulfil Babasaheb’s dream. But the Delhi government has started efforts to realise his dream. In the past seven years, the work that has been done in government schools and in the education sector in Delhi is nothing short of a revolution in education,” Kejriwal said.

He added that the Delhi government allocated 25% of the state’s budget for education and developing infrastructure.

“The percentage of students who cleared their exams has started increasing. And this year, 99.6% of Class 12 students have passed with flying colours from Delhi’s government schools. People find it hard to believe because earlier this number used to be some 50% or 60%, maybe even 70% as a lot of government school students would fail. But this time, Delhi’s government schools performed better than many private schools,” Kejriwal said, adding that the Delhi government is establishing a teachers’ university with the goal of preparing educators of the highest global standard.

The chief minister said that the Delhi government has now moved on to “the next step” and launched a happiness curriculum and a Deshbhakti (patriotism) curriculum to make students better human being and patriots.

Delhi BJP spokesperson Harish Khurana said, “Arvind Kejriwal does not have faith in Indian federalism. President and PM are not political leaders but they are the constitutional heads of the state and their photos are used in all government offices. We should have additional pictures of Bhagat Singh and Ambedkar but removing pictures of constitutional head is not a good idea and is against Indian federalism,” said Khurana.

Delhi government did not respond to this.