As the assembly election approach in three days, Delhi witnessed a day of intense campaigning as the Bharatiya Janata Party, Aam Aadmi Party and Congress intensified their campaigns, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Arvind Kejriwal and Mallikarjun Kharge targeting each other.
The campaigning for the February 5 assembly election will end on Monday evening, with vote counting scheduled for February 8.
The 70-seat Delhi assembly is witnessing a triangular contest between AAP, BJP, and Congress.
On Sunday, the BJP held 80 rallies in the national capital, with several Union ministers including Rajnath Singh and Chirag Paswan, along with five BJP chief ministers taking to the streets to target the ruling AAP.
At a rally in RK Puram, Narendra Modi accused AAP of making false promises and engaging in corruption. He claimed “AAP-da” had ruined 11 years of Delhi and said that a double-engine government focused on development and growth would now be elected.
The prime minister later in a post on X said, “Delhiites trust only the BJP because it does what it says. It is clear from the huge crowd gathered in RK Puram that the ‘lotus’ will bloom in Delhi.”
Arvind Kejriwal accuses BJP of “hooliganism”
AAP leader and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal targeted the BJP, accusing it of “hooliganism” ahead of the February 5 elections.
He claimed BJP workers were threatening and assaulting AAP supporters in the New Delhi constituency, where he is up against BJP’s Parvesh Verma and Congress’ Sandeep Dikshit.
“Our leaders and supporters are being threatened to join the BJP or face arrest and attacks. But we cannot be scared,” he said, adding that Delhi will not tolerate such “intimidation tactics.”
Kejriwal also launched a new social media campaign, #AmitShahKiGoondagardi, on X to respond to the alleged threats. The campaign saw videos and messages shared from the verified accounts of Kejriwal, Delhi chief minister Atishi, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and other AAP leaders and supporters.
Mallikarjun Kharge calls Modi the ‘chief of liars’
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, alleging that while Modi is “jhoothon ka sardar” (chief of liars), the former Delhi CM turned out to be his “baap” (father) in speaking lies.
At a public meeting in Mustafabad, Kharge targeted Kejriwal, accusing him of deceiving Anna Hazare and misleading the public to gain votes. He urged people to use the broom, the AAP’s election symbol, to sweep the party out of power.
No immediate reaction was available from either the BJP or the AAP.
“Kejriwal made false promises and abused the Congress. He tried to defame us. He is the same person who used to say ‘I am fighting against corruption, we have to remove corruption and bring Lokpal.’ He brought elderly Anna Hazare to Delhi, duped him, lied and took people’s votes,” Kharge said.
“Kejriwal came on foot to ask for votes and then made an entry into ‘sheesh mahal’. He used to drive a small car but now has a convoy of 10-20 cars. This is his simplicity. There is another ‘bawa’ of his in Delhi who also used to say ‘I am backward, I am a chaiwala, my mother used to clean utensils to sustain my education’, how many lies will you speak to grab power? You lie about your mother and father,” Kharge said.
“So, on one hand there is Kejriwal and on the other is his ‘Bawa’ Modi. They are both jhooton ke Sardar (chieftains of liars). Both will ruin the country,” Kharge said.
Citing the “unfulfilled” promises made by Modi to farmers and on providing employment, Kharge said, “That is why I repeatedly sat Modi saheb ‘Jhoothon ka Sardar hain’ and Kejriwal turned out to be his ‘baap (father)’ in speaking lies after lies.”
He said that in getting the country’s independence and building the country, India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru played a key role.
With PTI inputs