At first event after Delhi poll defeat, Kejriwal takes swipe at BJP: ‘Today’s rulers worse than British’

Drawing a parallel between his own incarceration and Bhagat Singh’s imprisonment, Kejriwal said Bhagat Singh’s letters from jail were being censored but some of his letters were never delivered. “Back when I was in jail, as August 15 approached, I had written a letter to the L-G suggesting that in my absence, Atishi ji should be allowed to hoist the flag (Tricolour). That letter was never delivered. Instead, I was served with a notice and threatened that the facilities I was receiving in jail would be revoked. I thought that at least the British delivered letters after censoring them — these people didn’t even bother doing that. They are worse than the British,” he said.

Kejriwal also accused the BJP of disregarding the legacy of Bhagat Singh and B R Ambedkar after coming to power in Delhi. He claimed that within 48 hours of assuming office, the BJP removed pictures of both icons from government offices. “Years ago, when we decided to install their pictures in government offices, the Congress had an issue with it, saying Mahatma Gandhi’s pictures were missing. But when the BJP removed Bhagat Singh ji’s pictures, they had no objections,” he said. “I want to ask them: is there anyone who has sacrificed more for the country than Bhagat Singh?”

Kejriwal further criticised the BJP government for allegedly putting restrictions on the free bus rides scheme for women in Delhi. He claimed bus conductors were now denying free pink tickets to women unless they downloaded a mobile app. “Why are they doing this? Instead of improving facilities, they are withdrawing existing ones. By now, they should have started giving Rs 2,500 to women, but they have not,” he said.

The event, which began with party workers assembling outside the headquarters, saw celebrations as attendees danced to patriotic songs. The party had called on all MLAs, councillors, and leaders of its frontal organisations to participate in large numbers.

Looking ahead, the AAP has planned a large-scale event dedicated to Dr B R Ambedkar on his birth anniversary, with outreach activities across all Assembly constituencies.

Former Delhi unit chief Gopal Rai, who has been assigned to oversee AAP’s election campaign in Gujarat following a recent organisational shuffle, opened his address with slogans of ‘Veer shahidon ki kurbani, yaad rakhenge Hindustani.’

“We were born out of struggle. AAP is about fighting through difficult circumstances. We started with Delhi, but we will now expand across the country,” he said.

Newly appointed Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj, addressing the party’s immediate challenges, contrasted AAP’s past electoral victories with the BJP’s recent win. “When our government came to power in 2015 and then again in 2020, there was happiness on every street. But now, after the BJP’s win, nobody is celebrating. Their MLAs are themselves looking for the people who made them win,” he remarked.

Bharadwaj also underscored the importance of building a stronger organisational base for the party post-election. “Earlier, it was difficult to know who was truly with us. But now, gold has been separated from brass. At this time, those who stand with us are pure gold,” he said.