New Delhi: As Delhi heads for one of the most fiercely fought electoral battle, senior BJP leader and Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said his party's main rival was Arvind Kejriwal's AAP which has been eyeing to recapture power.
In an address to BJP workers at Viswas Nagar in east Delhi, Jaitley was severely critical of AAP and said people of the city will have to decide whether they want "good governance" or "anarchy" in the capital.
The Finance Minister said Congress, which ruled the city for 15 years from 1998-2013, was nowhere in the the contest as people rejected the party in the last Assembly and Lok Sabha polls.
"In Delhi polls, Kejriwal is the only issue (competition). Voters need to decide whether they want good governance in Delhi or anarchy," the Finance Minister, who has been overseeing BJP's preparation for the polls, said. The AAP has been putting up a spirited fight as their leaders and candidates have been holding corner meetings and door-to-door campaigns seeking a second shot at power.
The AAP had made a spectacular debut in the Assembly polls in 2013 winning 28 seats out of 70 and formed a government with Congress's support. Jaitley asked the party workers to put in their "heart and soul" in the poll campaign as only few days are remaining for the crucial polls.
Attacking Kejriwal for his protest at the Rajpath when he was the Chief Minister, Jaitley referred to his reported comments about the Republic Day during the demonstration in January last year.
"Kiran Bedi is capable of ensuring good governance and discipline. How can a Chief Minister say that he will not let the Republic Day parade happen? We will form a majority government and Congress will not be able to get few seats even to extend support to any party," he said.
BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah have been targetting AAP and its leader Arvind Kejriwal in their election rallies. In a separate rally, Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu alleged that Kejriwal had "sweared on his children" to never join hands with the Congress but changed his stance later on.
The BJP had attacked Kejriwal with such references through print advertisements that had carried caricatures of Kejriwal along with veteran activist Anna Hazare. "He had sweared on his children that he will not join hands with the Congress but when we declined to form the government due to lack of numbers he immediately backtracked...What happened to that vow?" Naidu asked at a rally in Mahipalpur area of Bijwasan constituency.
He said he used to respect Kejriwal and had thought the AAP chief would bring some change being a "new entrant" in politics. "But he sat in the lap of Congress and became the Chief Minister of Delhi in just three months of joining politics. How can you trust such a man?" Venkaiah asked.
He further referred to the Congress as the "Baap (father)" of AAP and the latter as its "Baccha (child)". Launching a counter-attack on Congress President Sonia Gandhi who questioned Modi on the issue of black money in her rally today, he said, "I ask her where have they kept it?" He further said that the black money would be brought back and whosoever was guitly will be put behind bars.
Stating that Delhi's development was very important, he emphasised that the government at the state has to work in tandem with the Central government. The senior BJP leader also reiterated his promise to develop a smart city near Dwarka with the assistance of Spain.
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