No alliances with parties, want to partner 130 cr Indians, says Arvind Kejriwal

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. File Photo

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said his party would not ally with other outfits as it intended to partner with 130 crore people of India.

Speaking on 'Aam Aadmi Party and its role in 2024 Lok Sabha elections as part of a lecture series organised to mark the golden jubilee of the Nagpur edition of daily Lokmat, Kejriwal also said that he didn't want to defeat anyone in politics but sought to make India the number one country in the world.

He said the AAP will usher in progress by constructing hospitals and schools.

"Many people ask me with whom will we do a national alliance. I do not know how to do politics. I don't understand alliances of 10 and 20 parties to defeat anyone. I don't want to defeat anyone, I want the country to win. I will only enter into an alliance with 130 crore people of the country to make India number one in the world," he said.

Without naming the BJP, the Delhi chief minister said a "huge party" was currently vociferously supporting hooliganism, engineering riots, and taking out welcome processions for rapists.

"The country cannot progress with this type of hooliganism. If you want hooliganism and riots you can go with them, but if you want to progress, schools and hospitals you can come with me. Let us ally with 130 crore common people," he asserted.

Kejriwal said the AAP's focus was not on the 2024 Lok Sabha polls but on working for the country, adding that people like him had come after leaving their careers to serve the country.

India must become the number one country in the world as soon as possible, Kejriwal said, adding that he wanted to play an important role in this quest.

Countering the charge of indulging in freebie politics, the Delhi CM said that money meant for public welfare used to be consumed by corruption, and his government, by stopping corruption and saving money therein was giving people free electricity and other amenities.

Highlighting the AAP's work in Delhi in the education sector, Kejriwal said government schools had a pass percentage of 99.7 per cent in Class XII exams, leaving private schools way behind.

"A total of 4 lakh students left private schools and joined government schools in Delhi. These include rich people as facilities provided in government schools are not available even in private ones," he said.

In the last three years, 450 government school students were getting admissions annually to the prestigious IITs, the Delhi CM said, adding that such developments rather than politics gave him satisfaction.

Vijay Darda, chairman, editorial board, Lokmat Media Group, spoke about how his group helped people amid Covid-19 with many staffers also succumbing to the infection.

He also expressed hope that Nagpur will one day become the capital of a separate Vidarbha state.

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