BJP says Congress funding Kejriwal

BJP leaders, though not ready to acknowledge the emerging presence of the AAP, are quietly mentioning the political greenhorn in the playing field of Delhi elections.

BJP leaders, though not ready to publicly acknowledge the emerging presence of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), are quietly mentioning the political greenhorn in the playing field of Delhi Assembly elections and the kind of impact the party might have in the polls.

Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP had launched its campaign much earlier than its two political rivals in Delhi — Congress and the BJP.

The BJP’s dilemma about how it looked at AAP and its increasing presence in the political arena was evident at a rally to kick-start its own election campaign on Tuesday.

“The battle is between Congress and BJP. There is no third party. If you give votes to them, the Congress will benefit. The only alternative is BJP,” said party leader M Venkaiah Naidu.

The leaders claimed that the new party was not there to change politics but merely benefit the Congress in the elections.

“The new party has started targeting the BJP as it is scared of us and the fact that we will come to power. They are being funded by the Congress,” Vijay Goel, BJP’s Delhi president alleged. He was referring to AAP’s telephonic campaign wherein a one-minute long audio tape with Arvind Kejriwal’s voice is played to target voters.

“We are criticising both the Congress and the BJP. It says we need to remove the Congress because it is corrupt but BJP too is not above the board. The message says if Vijay Goel becomes the chief minister, he would be no different in corruption than Sheila Dikshit,” said Manish Sisodia, AAP spokesperson.

Meanwhile, AAP on Tuesday announced names of candidates shortlisted for Rajinder Nagar and Rithala constituencies.