‘Putting women on duty — tell all to vote for AAP…’: Ex-CM Arvind Kejriwal at Delhi padyatra

AAP, as it announced the scheme to give women Rs 1,000 a month, is aware that women have been among its biggest supporters.

3 min readNew DelhiDec 17, 2024 05:50 AM IST

Former CM Kejriwal addresses a padyatra in Badarpur. (PTI)

Hundreds of phones went up in the crowded Hari Nagar market as AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal took the stage Monday evening. In the houses above shops, men, women and children leaned out of balconies to hear what the former Delhi Chief Minister said. But his message during the padyatra in the Badarpur constituency was mostly for the women.

“I am putting all the women here on duty to tell all the women to vote for AAP. They should tell their men too. I always say women are smarter than men…The men vote for BJP sometimes,” he said.

AAP, as it announced the scheme to give women Rs 1,000 a month, is aware that women have been among its biggest supporters. A survey conducted by Lokniti-CSDS, on the eve of the 2020 Delhi Assembly polls, showed women were 11 percentage points more likely to have voted for AAP in the Assembly polls than men — 60% as opposed to 49%.

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Speaking about the scheme, Kejriwal said, “Registration for mont-hly transfers of Rs 1,000 to women’s bank accounts will start in a few days. After elections, the amount will increase to Rs 2,100 a month… If you vote for BJP, the money will stop.”

Badarpur, where Hari Nagar is located, was won by BJP’s Ramvir Singh Bidhuri in 2020 by a margin of 3,719 votes.

Kejriwal said this difference also determined the work done in the constituency. “I have installed sewer lines in all of Delhi. But Badarpur remains because you voted for BJP last time,” Kejriwal said.

Bidhuri, who was the Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, resigned in June after being elected from the South Delhi Lok Sabha seat.

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AAP has now fielded Ram Singh Netaji, who joined the party in 2020, from the constituency. A two-time independent MLA, Netaji was a member of the BSP before he joined AAP.

In 2015, the AAP won the seat. Its MLA, Narayan Dutt Sharma, secured 27.93% of the vote share or 47,583 votes.

For several who came out to hear Kejriwal speak, AAP’s free power and water as well as the pitch about better education and healthcare still holds ground.

Khushnama, 32, a resident, said she was a beneficiary of the AAP’s policies. “We don’t have to pay bills for water and electricity because of Kejriwal. He has also made bus travel free for us,” she said, adding that her children study in a government school and her family gets free medicines from the mohalla clinic in the area.

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Shanti Yadav (50), meanwhile, is skeptical of the promise of getting Rs 1,000 per month. “I will only believe it when I see the money in my account,” she said. Her biggest grouse is the clogged sewer line near her house. “We have to pay Rs. 100 every week to get the sewer lines cleaned because the government does nothing,” she said.

Devansh Mittal

Devansh Mittal is a Correspondent at The Indian Express, based in the New Delhi City bureau. He reports on urban policy, civic governance, and infrastructure in the National Capital Region, with a growing focus on housing, land policy, transport, and the disruption economy and its social implications. Professional Background Education: He studied Political Science at Ashoka University. Core Beats: His reporting focuses on policy and governance in the National Capital Region, one of the largest urban agglomerations in the world. He covers housing and land policy, municipal governance, urban transport, and the interface between infrastructure, regulation, and everyday life in the city. Recent Notable Work His recent reporting includes in-depth examinations of urban policy and its on-ground consequences: An investigation into subvention-linked home loans that documented how homebuyers were drawn into under-construction projects through a “builder–bank” nexus, often leaving them financially exposed when delivery stalled. A detailed report on why Delhi’s land-pooling policy has remained stalled since 2007, tracing how fragmented land ownership, policy design flaws, and mistrust among stakeholders have kept one of the capital’s flagship urban reforms in limbo. A reported piece examining the collapse of an electric mobility startup and what it meant for women drivers dependent on the platform for livelihoods. Reporting Approach Devansh’s work combines on-ground reporting with analysis of government data, court records, and academic research. He regularly reports from neighbourhoods, government offices, and courtrooms to explain how decisions on housing, transport, and the disruption economy shape everyday life in the city. Contact X (Twitter): @devanshmittal_ Email: devansh.mittal@expressindia.com ... Read More

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