‘AAP will form a govt in Himachal or sit in Opp. We will go alone. No midway’: Surjeet Singh Thakur

Thakur: No one has been abandoned. Arvind Kejriwal is going to hold a big public rally in Solan on November 3. Apart from him, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia as well as 20 star campaigners will hold rallies across constituencies in the coming days. The whole party is working in the field.

* But many of your candidates seem to lack resources. Do you think you can arrange the funding, given the resources your opponents are putting in?

Thakur: Money is not our party’s priority, neeyat (intention) is the priority. The party has given tickets not on the basis of money a candidate has, but on the basis of their neeyat and nishtha (dedication). We are not going to distribute daru (liquor) or paisa (money) to voters. Our candidates belong to common families.

* How many seats is the party realistically focusing on?

Thakur: We are contesting all the 68 constituencies with our full might. We are putting equal effort in all. We are not here merely to spoil the political game of the BJP or the Congress.

* Do you think the leadership could have paid more attention to Himachal? Even AAP in-charge of the state Sandeep Pathak is missing.

Thakur: No, it is not so. Our door-to-door campaign has been on for a long time. Our workers are there in the field. Our main leaders will come for campaigning. Sandeep Pathak is at work in Gujarat . He was in Chhattisgarh some days ago. He is looking after the party affairs on the national level (as well).

* Your opponents accuse you of having a secret deal with the BJP to damage the Congress, as well as other non-BJP parties.

Thakur: Earlier, the same allegations were levelled in Delhi, and then in Punjab. They (the BJP and Congress) accuse AAP of being a vote katua (cutting into their votes). In fact, the two parties have a mutual setting to ensure that AAP does not come to power. Both have plundered Himachal badly over so many years and have run up a debt of Rs 70,000 crore. They want to continue this plundering by turns.

* How many seats do you think AAP will win?

Thakur: 60-plus.

* Is this a real assessment or political jumlebaazi?

Thakur: We are getting huge public support and on that basis, I am saying this. AAP is the alternative.

* What would AAP’s stand be if there is a hung Assembly. Will it support the BJP or the Congress?

Thakur: Such a situation had arisen in Delhi in our first election (in the capital) and we had told the Congress our condition, that if you follow our agenda, we can form the government… But now AAP has decided that either it will form a government or it will sit in the Opposition.We will go alone. No midway.

* Many senior AAP leaders are in jail on corruption charges. On the one hand, you claim that your party is completely honest and against corruption, and on the other hand, so many of your leaders are in jail.

Thakur: It should be understood on technical grounds why they have jailed our big leaders. Not even one charge has been proved in court. The ED (Enforcement Directorate) and CBI have been snubbed by courts… They have only one agenda, that big leaders of AAP must not campaign in Gujarat and Himachal.

* Why have tainted candidates been fielded in Himachal by your party? Some of them face corruption charges.

Thakur: If they face cases of murder, rape, or other crimes, our party never gives tickets to such candidates. Most of the cases (faced by our candidates) were lodged when our people protested against anti-government decisions and organised demonstrations. Such cases are not of criminal nature. The case against the candidate from Nachan, for example, is full of lies. She was the youngest pradhan (of the state) and is a youth icon of Himachal. We have seen all the facts of the case (against her of embezzlement of cement bags). Even the High Court gave relief to her. Government agencies could not prove anything.

* Some teachers from Punjab have campaigned here, telling people that the AAP government in Punjab has not fulfilled any of the promises it made.

Thakur: Those who came here were planted by the Congress.

* Several of your rebel leaders who did not get tickets have alleged that the tickets were sold?

Thakur: The BJP and Congress are putting in all efforts to pacify their rebels. In AAP, we are doing no such thing. There is no scope for such people (in the party). One who came to change the system has no concern about tickets, and those who are here for tickets have no interest in vyavastha parivartan (changing the system). Rebels will not be entertained in AAP. Those who are making such allegations joined the party for their own benefits.

* What are your main campaign issues, you would say?

Thakur: The 11 guarantees given by Kejriwal will be our main issues — to provide free and world-class education to the people of Himachal, health, corruption-free government, Rs 1,000 Samman Rashi for women, Rs 3,000 unemployment allowance for those jobless till the age of 40, free pilgrimage for the old, Rs 1 crore Samman Rashi to martyrs… We will also implement the OPS (Old Pension Scheme) within a month and fulfill our guarantees to farmers, including MSP and processing plants.

* From where will you arrange the money for these guarantees? Himachal Pradesh already has a huge debt.

Thakur: We will eliminate corruption and generate resources of income. We have prepared the blueprint. Earlier, the Delhi government was under deficit. It was reeling under a Rs 28,000 crore debt, but now Delhi is a surplus state. We will commercialise the 6,500 resthouses, guesthouses and circuit houses spread across the state which have become places for gambling and liquor. These are just some examples. There are many other things we can do in the state.