For years, AAP’s Durgesh Pathak worked behind the scenes for the party, managing election campaigns and state organisations. On Sunday, when he won his first election, he credited the win to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal. Speaking to The Indian Express, Pathak said he will ensure that the water woes in the Rajinder Nagar Assembly constituency are addressed. What do you believe is the reason for your victory? This is the victory of the splendid work done by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal; it is due to his work and his commitment that people trusted me. It is the victory of all the karyakartas and people of the constituency. People compared the work done by Kejriwal ji and by the BJP in MCD. People are seeing that there is garbage everywhere, drains are not being desilted by the MCD. And people also saw the Kejriwal model where schools and hospitals are in good condition. You were called an outsider, how did you counter it? When I came to Delhi and was preparing for the UPSC, I lived in Old Rajinder Nagar and now I am living in the hearts of the people. That is why they gave me such a big mandate. The BJP had no agenda, they had lost from Day 1 and that is why they were saying these things. In AAP too, I was involved with the constituency. I currently live in Rajinder Nagar and people know that my intent is development. You lost the Assembly elections in 2020. What was your first reaction after Sunday’s results? I come from a small village called Sikohara in Sant Kabir Nagar. No one has been elected from there even as a zila panchayat, let alone an MLA. My account had just Rs 5 lakh and I am an MLA — this can happen only in Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP and nowhere else. What are the first few things you will work on? Water supply is an issue and we will ensure that it is addressed. Though, in the past few years since AAP had come to power in 2015, pipelines and sewer lines have been laid in several areas. There are some issues due to the summer and low pressure. People knew that only AAP will get it fixed, so they gave me a chance. We will ensure that it is done. Newsletter | Click to get the day's best explainers in your inbox You were MCD in-charge also, what do you have to say on polls being postponed? It is clear now that BJP has lost support on the ground, so they deferred the MCD election. People are observing everything.