 "Help AAP win 150 out of 182 seats in Gujarat: Kejriwal urges voters")
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday urged the people of Gujarat to vote for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the upcoming state Assembly elections and help it win 150 out of the total 182 seats for a "big change".
He also appealed to them not to vote for the Congress, saying that voting for it would help the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) win the election.
Both the BJP and Congress were united in their aim to defeat the AAP, he claimed.
Assembly elections in the BJP-ruled Gujarat are slated to be held by the end of this year.
"Only 50 days are left. Push hard so that we get at least 150 seats. We need a big change, 90-95 seats will not do. People of Delhi gave us 67 seats out of 70, people of Punjab gave us 92 out of 117 seats. Will not the people of Gujarat defeat both Punjab and Delhi, break their record?" Kejriwal said while addressing a public rally in Surendranagar city.
He also claimed that the Centre's Intelligence Bureau (IB) has said that the AAP will win by a thin margin if the Gujarat Assembly elections are held today.
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"We will have to work hard. We don't have money, we are honest people. My bank account is empty, and so is Bhagwant Mann's. The bank account of our party is also empty. They got us checked. They conducted raids on me, Bhagwant Mann and everyone, but found nothing," he said.
People will have to contest elections on their own if they want change and a better future for their children, the AAP's national convener said.
"A storm of change is coming, and the entire Gujarat is craving for a change. Don't get derailed, do not vote for Congress to make BJP win...Congress will win less than 10 seats, and the winners will also join BJP after winning as Congress candidates," he added.
Kejriwal said if the AAP is voted to power in Gujarat, it would first end corruption.
"They (BJP) looted the state for 27 years. Every leader has built several houses, bought properties, and deposited so much money in the Swiss banks that their seven generations don't need to do anything," he said.
The Delhi CM wondered how Gujarat incurred a debt of Rs 3.5 lakh crore despite the state having an annual budget of Rs 2.5 lakh crore.
"They stole all the money. We will end this theft. When AAP forms a government, we will offer a corruption-free government. No chief minister, MLA or minister will steal. If he steals, he will go to jail. We will not tolerate those who indulge in theft, irrespective of whether he belongs to our party or any other party," he said.
He reiterated the promises of providing free electricity, better facilities for government schools and hospitals, Rs 1,000 per month to women above 18 years of age, 10 lakh government jobs and Rs 3,000 unemployment allowance to the youths, among other things.
"We will pull down the existing government-run schools and build new ones in their place. They want to make your children labourers, but I want to make them doctors, engineers," he said, adding that his government would also ensure that private schools do not hike fees.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)