Bhagwant Mann interview: ‘AAP is not an NGO, it’s a national party… BJP wants Kejriwal ji to stay away from canvassing, I will do it on his behalf’

This election is not about winning or losing, it’s an election to save democracy and Constitution. Two-three top leaders have said, whether by mistake or intentionally, that give us 400 seats and we will change the Constitution. How dare they? As it is, they don’t follow the Constitution. Supreme Court is supreme, but they don’t obey its directions. The apex court ruled in favour of Kejriwal 5-0, but they brought an ordinance at 6 pm and changed the ruling. They don’t listen to the Election Commission either. CBI, and Enforcement Directorate are their ‘kamaoo bete’ (earning sons). First conduct an ED raid and then get the company to buy electoral bonds.

How come the Governors of only the non-BJP states ask so many questions. They are troubling Mamata didi, Stalin, Hemant Soren, Naveen ji. Dilli mein LG ne keher hi macha rakhha tha (In Delhi it was the LG’s high-handedness). In my case, the Governor refused to let me summon the budget session till I approached the Supreme Court. The BJP policy is that where you are not elected, you get the selected to trouble the elected.

These polls are very important. Agar log chook gaye, to Russia ki tarah, Putin ki tarah bas main, main, main hoga, aur vipaksh khatam (If people miss this time, India will be like Russia, Putin, and there won’t be any Opposition).

What is the feedback you are getting about the INDIA alliance?

I am getting very good feedback from states across the country. Mamata ji is fighting from West Bengal, I dare the BJP to defeat her. I am fighting from Punjab, Akhilesh ji is fighting from UP, Tejashwi from Bihar, Thackeray and Pawar sir from Maharashtra, Stalin is fighting from Tamil Nadu. We (INDIA) will defeat them roundly. BJP has become jittery. The leaked results of the exit polls after the first phase of polling show that the party is not doing well.

Are you looking towards an alliance with Congress in Punjab?

No, we have declared all the 13 candidates who have already done one round of their respective constituencies. Congress has also declared some candidates.

What will happen to AAP if Arvind Kejriwal is not released soon?

Kejriwal is not a person, he is a thought. You can arrest a person but not his thought. AAP is not an NGO, it’s a national party, we have five legislators in Gujarat, two in Goa, we have 13 people in the Rajya Sabha, we have two mayors. Kejriwal has been sent to jail on a false case but AAP is standing like a rock behind him. Yesterday Sunita ji (Kejriwal’s wife) had also gone to Ranchi with me. The BJP wants him to stay away from canvassing, I will do it on his behalf.

We are the youngest, latest, and fastest growing party. Jana Sangh was born in 1958 and got two MPs after 26 years in 1984. Congress was conceived in 1885, but it was in 1930 they got two councillors. We were born in 2012, and we already have two governments in two states. We will win all the 13 seats of Punjab, one in Kurukshetra, all in Delhi, Assam. Aam Aadmi Party is the future of the country.

Is it legally tenable for Kejriwal to have his office in jail?

Late Subrata Roy of the Sahara (Group) was arrested in the chit fund scam, yet they let him set up office in jail. Where is it written that if a sitting CM is behind bars, he will have to resign.

Do you see a national role for yourself?

I will do whatever job is assigned to me. Earlier too, I used to accompany Arvind ji to many places. We canvassed together in Gujarat. I’ve gone to Madya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh. He treats me like a younger brother, whatever duty is assigned to me, I will perform it. we don’t have a high command like the others. Our bond is that of a family.

Who will take over the party if Kejriwal is not allowed to run his office from the jail?

It’s a hypothetical question. There is no rule that he has to resign. By that yardstick they can arrest me, Mamata ji. They can arrest a person and say we are investigating and an investigation can carry on for years. Does only BJP have a washing powder? It has taken such corrupt politicians into its fold, and to others they say, “Na khaunga, na khane doonga” (we won’t tolerate corruption).

The person on whose complaint Kejriwal has been jailed couldn’t give any proof against him. But the same man bought electoral bonds worth Rs 55 crore for BJP. Shouldn’t there be a case against BJP president JP Nadda? First ED, CBI raids a person, then he gives money (to the ruling party).

These elections are seeing a large number of turncoats not just in Punjab but everywhere. Leaders seem to be changing parties for their personal benefits. Does this signify a change in political morality?

See, I can’t say anything about the circumstances under which a person switches parties. But our party is born out of volunteers. I call them moths (bhamakkars). I am a bulb and they are like moths drawn to me. The brighter I burn, the more they come. And if I dim my light, they vanish. I trust my bhamakkars, they trust me. I will never mistreat my volunteers. Yes, some of our leaders have also jumped ship but where are they now? Sangathan wada hunda hai, vyakti wada nahin hunda hai (An organisation is bigger than an individual). Big leaders have left their parties but with what results. Chaar din ki chandni, phir andheri raat. They either return to their mother party or became irrelevant. This politics of party-hopping won’t work for long. Look at Capt (Capt Amarinder Singh), I have seen him in Akali Dal, Congress, his own party and now with BJP. Our volunteers may have grouses but they don’t jump ship.

Are these elections a reality check for the AAP in Punjab? What are your top three achievements?

It should be a reality check for us. We have done in two years what Opposition couldn’t in 70. First is the free electricity. Opposition used to say where will they get money for it. Even our opponents are getting zero bills. Anyone with less than 600 units is getting no bills. No 2, it is the control over corruption. No 3, it is 43,000 government jobs without any lobbying or corruption.

I used to say we will see reverse migration. That has already started. A youngster who got employed as SDO dropped his plans to migrate to Canada. As for farmers, I give them electricity during the day, so they don’t have to wake up at midnight to water their crops. We have started aam aadmi clinics, schools of eminence, ration at doorstep etc. The results of government schools was 98% this year, two toppers are from govt schools. This year we expect 2 lakh students to migrate from private to government schools.

The Centre will give us Rs 8,000 crore they owe us if 13 MPs go to the Lok Sabha as my voice.

All parties talk about the need for crop diversification but nothing gets done on the ground. How will you do it?

Rice is not part of our diet, we sell 99% of it to the rest of India. but while doing that we forget that we are not importing rice but ground water. The water table has fallen to dangerous depths. Now the FCI is getting rice from other states. Diversification will have to be done. I have suggested to the Centre that they should tell our farmers to grow pulses and they should pay them a sum that doesn’t let them miss the profit from paddy. It’s a good solution. We import pulses such as arhar, masoor and urad from Columbia and Mozambique for USD 2 billion. Give us a chance to grow these. This will also banish stubble burning.

But when our farmers want to go to Delhi to get their demand for legal guarantee (for MSP) accepted, you make a border at Haryana. Where should our farmer go? Journalists ask me, why do farmers come to Delhi. I said, “Should I send them to Lahore?” Why are they coming in tractors? What else will they use? Farmers were protesting peacefully, they were not making any threats, they were not saying we will bring down the Red Fort. It was the cops who were violent.

There is a feeling that corporates are wary of coming to Punjab because of protests?

Tata Steel is making its second biggest plant after Jamshedpur at Ludhiana. Godrej, Hindustan Lever, Kissan, Cargill, all are heading here. We have got investments between 70,000-80,000 crore. They will give employment to around 2 lakh youngsters. If industry is coming, that means law and order is okay.

Is there polarisation in Punjab?

AAP is a secular party, ham kaam ki rajniti karte hain, naam ki nahin. We also want a magnificent Ram Temple (in Ayodhya), I have also visited it but it hasn’t caused any divide among us. There is a footfall of over 1 lakh a day at the Golden Temple. The social bonds of Punjab are very strong, we celebrate Diwali, Dussehra, Eid, Gurpurab as one. Anandpur Sahib is one of the five takhts of the Sikhs. Its MP until now was Manish Tewari, a Brahmin. Faridkot is also a panthic seat, but Mohd Sadiq was the MP there. Punjabis don’t care about your name, they are a happy-go-lucky and hard-working community. It’s a land of guruan, peeran and shaheedan.

Has the aam aadmi become khaas (entitled)? There are complaints about inaccessible AAP MLAs who flaunt visible symbols of power such as security.

I live in the CM residence here, will people be able to visit me if I were in my village house at Satauj? My MLAs are still aam (ordinary), 80 are first-timers. The Opposition is angry that the sons and daughters of ordinary families have become legislators and ministers. They think this is an entitlement of a few. I stop wherever I see people even now. The other day, some farmers stopped me and said you should release water in the canals, I did that the very next day. It’s the best way to get feedback.

What about the allegations of politics of revenge?

I have never met Ashu, Dharamsot, Sham Sunder Arora and the others that the Vigilance is arresting. Mera ki wat da raula hai ena de naal (Do I have a land dispute with them?) I have papers that prove that they have indulged in corruption. I have also booked my own MLAs, those I had campaigned for. I have the same rules for everyone. If even my friends or members of my family including my mother and wife flout a rule, they will have to face the consequences. They should not expect any mercy from me.

What about the charge that Punjab is controlled from Delhi?

Our party’s head office is in Delhi, so is that of BJP, Congress. You must have heard how the state Congress is awaiting the list from Delhi. In Punjab we take all our decisions sitting here. Our party’s base camp is in Delhi, the boss is in Delhi. They have never objected to any of our decisions. All those in Opposition who accuse us of being ruled by Delhi, I dare them to open their mouth in front of their high command. They won’t as much as whimper. Sukhpal Khaira says he is angry because he thinks Punjab should make its decisions itself. I want to ask him, has he got his ticket from Bhucho or Bathinda? It’s come from Delhi, hasn’t it?

In our case, we are a family. Arvind Kejriwal di Dilli hor hai, Modi di Dilli hor hai (Kejriwal’s Delhi is different from Modi’s Delhi). Arvind ji took the place of my father during my marriage ceremony as I lost my father in 2011. We are one, our country is one.

Are you satisfied with your work as the CM?

I haven’t done anything yet. I have to make Punjab the No. 1 state in all spheres. It has to be No. 1 for the farmer, labourer, trader, industrialist, employees, for everyone. Punjab’s legacy had dimmed, I want to brighten it again. I can’t get a better opportunity than this. If I don’t make a difference now, I won’t be able to answer the coming generations. It’s been only two years and I am still learning but I have grand dreams for Punjab.

You started out as a gifted satirist. Do you miss that artiste?

My creativity continues to flow, it helps me silence my ardent critics with one-liners. As an artiste, I used to focus my satire at the shortcomings in the system. I feel that Almighty first got me to write the script, and I am now implementing it.