Labelled ‘Thief’, Treated Like ‘Biggest Terrorist’ For Providing Free Power, Healthcare, Education To Delhiites: Arvind Kejriwal

Arvind Kejriwal asked people who should be considered a thief — the one who provides free facilities to people or those who fail to do so and make things expensive.

Delhi News: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Friday accused the BJP-led Centre of “unleashing” all the Central probe against him as if he was the “biggest terrorist” in the country. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo also claimed that the saffron party labelled him a “thief” for providing affordable amenities and good governance to Delhiites.

After laying the foundation stone of a government school building in Mayur Vihar Phase III, Kejriwal rued that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has labelled him as a “thief” even though he provided free electricity, healthcare and education to people in Delhi, while these facilities are expensive and of poor quality in the states ruled by the saffron party.

The chief minister asked people who should be considered a thief — the one who provides free facilities to people or those who fail to do so and make things expensive.

‘Will open as many schools as…’

Arvind Kejriwal, who has so far been defiant and skipped as many as five summons sent by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), asserted that he will open as many schools in the city as the number of summonses sent to him by probe agencies.

The chief minister stressed that the AAP government’s goal is to quality education to every citizen.

The AAP chief has been asked to appear before a city court on February 17 in connection with a complaint case filed by the ED against him. Kejriwal has skipped five summonses issued against him by the federal agency for questioning in a money-laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam.

Education only way to eradicate poverty

The Delhi CM asserted that providing quality education to all children will eradicate poverty within a generation and said his government is opening schools after schools in national capital to achieve that goal.

The condition of the government schools in the national capital and education was hopeless earlier and the children of poor people had no future, he claimed.

“We have opened so many magnificent schools since the AAP government was formed in Delhi. Several new schools have been inaugurated recently, including in Burari, Rohini and Palam, in which 1.5 lakh children will get education,” he said.

Free education was Ambedkar’s dream

Everyone will get free and quality education in Delhi, the chief minister said, adding that new school buildings are being built replacing the old ones. The new schools will have the best infrastructure, including laboratories, libraries, elevators and activity rooms, he said.

“We are fulfilling Dr (BR) Ambedkar’s dream of providing education to all children,” Kejriwal said.

Centre creating hurdles in AAP govt’s work

Kejriwal said two years ago, his government proposed a scheme for doorstep delivery of ration but the Centre did not allow it. “They obstructed it through the LG. But we are going to do doorstep delivery of ration in Punjab from Saturday,” the AAP leader said.

Once the scheme is launched in Punjab, it could be done in Delhi also and the Centre will not be able to stop it, he added.

The Centre has created many hurdles in the AAP government’s work, saying Delhi is a half state, Kejriwal alleged.

“I said let it be a full state. But, they do not do anything or let me do it,” he said.

(With PTI inputs)