Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks, which likened the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to an ‘aapda’ (disaster) for Delhi, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) intensified its criticism of the Arvind Kejriwal-led party. The BJP accused AAP of becoming the “biggest burden and liability” on the people of Delhi.
Senior BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar, during a press conference at the party headquarters, took aim at AAP, calling it merely a “newer version of the Congress.” Modi, while unveiling a range of infrastructure projects in Delhi, including those in housing and education, attacked AAP for having a detrimental impact on the national capital over the last decade. He also warned that the situation in Delhi would worsen if Kejriwal’s government continued to rule.
Chandrasekhar responded strongly in affirmation when asked whether Modi had any justification to say that AAP is a disaster, as he saw “absolutely no contradiction” in what the prime minister said. Modi, according to him, only reflected reality to the people of Delhi, in which AAP, when it was born, had promised a new kind of politics without corruption and lavish leadership, but has since deserted that promise.
The minister accused Kejriwal and his government of failing to live up to their commitments, noting their involvement in practices they had previously condemned. He emphasized that AAP’s claim of running a corruption-free government had been debunked.
“Prime Minister Modi’s statement that ‘AAP hi Dilli ki aapda hai’ (AAP is a disaster for Delhi) is entirely accurate,” said Chandrasekhar. He went on to call AAP the “biggest burden” on the people of Delhi, asserting that the party was no different from Congress in its approach to governance.
He commended the record of the Modi government over the past decade and continued to say that it was only the ruling party in Delhi, which was doing the right service for public interest. The government, according to him was focused on the development, progress, and more investment in the city, rather than AAP, which had made a history of “fake promises, corruption, and lies”.
Chandrasekhar also pointed out the resignation of Kejriwal in the wake of the liquor scam, the denial of benefits from the PM Ayushman scheme to Delhi residents, and other alleged shortcomings of the AAP government, reinforcing the BJP’s narrative of AAP’s failure to deliver on its promises. According to him, the people of Delhi were well aware of the truth and would not be swayed by AAP’s rhetoric.
With inputs from PTI.