Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday hit out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) calling him a “terrorist” and a “corrupt” politician. Asserting that he is neither a terrorist or corrupt, Kejriwal said the fact that he is “beloved by the people” “hurts the BJP”.
“Before Punjab (assembly) elections, PM (Narendra Modi) said Kejriwal is a terrorist. Home Minister (Amit Shah) set up an inquiry. What happened to it? Now, before the Gujarat and the MCD polls, they are saying Kejriwal is corrupt. If Kejriwal is a terrorist or is corrupt, arrest him, no?” Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.
“Kejriwal is neither a terrorist not corrupt. Kejriwal is ‘janta ka laadla’ (darling of the people). The BJP has a problem with him.”
Kejriwal and the AAP have been critised ahead of elections to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Gujarat assembly with BJP leaders calling it “the most corrupt party”.
In February, Kejriwal had also hit out at Modi, then Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over the “terrorist” remark.
Earlier, a controversy had erupted after BJP lawmaker Parvesh Verma called Kejriwal a “terrorist”. In a video clip, Verma was heard saying, “If Kejriwal comes to power again, Madipur’s streets will become Shaheen Bagh. There are many Natwarlals (cheats) like Kejriwal and aatankwadis (terrorists) like Kejriwal hiding in Delhi. We have to throw them out. I fail to understand if we should fight terrorists in Kashmir or against terrorists like Kejriwal in Delhi.”
The AAP is hoping to spring a surprise against the ruling BJP in Gujarat this year and push the opposition Congress into third place. The Gujarat assembly elections will be held in two phases on December 1 and 5, while the counting of votes will be conducted on December 8.