AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal addressed a gathering of AAP’s Mandal-level office bearers, on Saturday in Pitampura. In an impassioned speech, he declared that the upcoming Delhi Assembly Elections will be fought as a fight for the city’s very survival and urged party workers to redouble their efforts ahead of the upcoming elections. He emphasized that the stakes for Delhi’s future are higher than ever, asserting that the BJP aims to dismantle the progress made under AAP’s governance.
At the event, Arvind Kejriwal expressed optimism about AAP’s ability to secure a larger mandate than in the previous elections. In a rallying cry to AAP’s workers, he called for unity within the party, leaving no room for internal conflicts. The event also saw the presence of Senior AAP Leaders and former Ministers Manish Sisodia & Satyendar Jain, CM Atishi, Rajya Sabha MPs Dr. Sandeep Pathak & Sanjay Singh and AAP Delhi Convenor Gopal Rai along with all State Vice Presidents, Mandal Incharges, Mandal Presidents and Sangathan Mantris. The party also accorded a hero’s welcome to Satyendar Jain, who met all the workers for the first time after two years after getting bail yesterday. The workers enthusiastically gave him a standing ovation, while senior leaders garlanded upon his entry on the stage.
Arvind Kejriwal opened his address at the meeting by acknowledging the resilience of AAP’s leaders and volunteers, who have continued to work steadfastly despite the political challenges posed by the BJP. He accused the BJP of attempting to sabotage the progress made in Delhi over the past decade through orchestrated disruptions, including legal actions against key AAP leaders and administrative roadblocks by the Lieutenant Governor’s office. “When they put all of us—me, Satyendar Jain, Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh, Vijay Nair, Vibhav, and others—in jail, their aim was to break the party. But the party remained united, and the biggest reason for that is all of you—our workers, our Mandal Prabharis, our Vidhan Sabha in-charges, our MLAs, and all the office bearers of our party. You all are responsible for the party standing so strong today,” he said.
In a scathing critique of the BJP’s governance, Arvind Kejriwal remarked, “Perhaps no party in India’s history has been harassed as much as we have been by these individuals. People come to me and tell me about the state of things—they’ve made a mess everywhere, left garbage all over, stopped road repairs, let the sewage overflow, halted its maintenance and cleaning. In some areas, our MLAs and workers have told me they have even dumped cement bags into the sewers to block them. Who does that? Who ruins their own city, their own country? Only traitors, those who betray their nation, do such things—things that even an enemy of the country would do. How can someone who claims to be a patriot harm their own country like this? Such dirty politics!”
Continuing his critique he termed the time AAP top brass spent in jail as a trailer of BJP rule in Delhi. “When they put us in jail, the people of Delhi got a glimpse—a trailer—of what BJP’s rule in Delhi would look like. In just one year, BJP has shown what it will do to Delhi if given five years. In the nine years we worked, they ruined everything within a year. Imagine what they would do in five years! They had the opportunity. They had their LG (Lieutenant Governor) in their favor; they could have used the LG to accelerate work. Instead, they used him to stop all progress. In one year, they could have done twice the amount of work we did, repaired every road in Delhi. When we were in jail—me, Manish, Sanjay Singh, Satyendar Jain—they could have beautified the city so much that I wouldn’t have had anyone left to ask about me when I came out. But instead, they halted all progress.”
Expressing his confidence in bringing Delhi back on track he said, “Since I’ve returned, I’ve been working hard. Every halted project will resume, one by one. PWD roads are getting repaired, and soon we’ll start fixing the Municipal Corporation roads as well. Hospitals, Mohalla Clinics, where they had stopped giving medicines and tests, we are restarting those too. The old-age pensions, which they had stopped, we are resuming them too.”
He went on to outline how various schemes, such as the Farishtey Scheme for accident victims and the free healthcare initiative, were stalled by the BJP in the past year, only to be restarted by AAP. “The Farishtey Scheme, where the Delhi government covers all medical expenses in case of an accident in Delhi’s boundaries—this scheme, which had saved the lives of 26,000 people, was also halted by them. Isn’t it a good scheme? A noble one? It should not have politics around it, yet they stopped it too. But we have resumed it. We had introduced a scheme where, if you need a test like a CT scan, and the machine is broken at a government hospital, or there’s a long queue, you can get it done at a private hospital, and the Delhi government will bear the cost. No need for you to pay. We had another scheme for surgeries—if the doctor gives you a date two months later, you shouldn’t have to wait. In two months, the patient could die. We had introduced a system where you can get your operation done immediately at a private hospital, and we’ll cover the cost. They stopped that too. We have now resumed all these services.”
He continued, “Similarly, for children from underprivileged backgrounds preparing for competitive exams, many can’t afford coaching. These days, coaching for engineering exams can cost lakhs of rupees. Where will a poor family get 2-3 lakhs for coaching? We had a scheme to cover that, and they stopped it. But last week, our government, led by Atishi Ji, resumed it. Every work we had done in the past five years, they aim to dismantle because their government in 22 states is being questioned. When I went to campaign in Gujarat, people asked the BJP, ‘Kejriwal has given free electricity in Delhi and Punjab, why did you not do it here?’ In Madhya Pradesh, people asked, ‘Why not free electricity, bus rides for women, and good roads here?’ These questions are rising across the country. So, their goal is to halt our work in Delhi so that these questions don’t spread.”
He further criticized the BJP’s divisive politics, calling it a betrayal of national interest. “If they take control of the Delhi government, they don’t want to make Delhi better—they want to stop progress, so people elsewhere don’t raise these questions. If BJP captures power in Delhi, all the work we’ve done together in the past ten years will be undone. These parties, which have done nothing in the last 70 years but divide people based on caste and religion, never asked for votes based on work. For the first time, a party has set an example of governance in the form of AAP. What we have accomplished in education, healthcare, electricity, water, bus travel, teerth, pensions, roads—no other party has done this in the history of India.” Arvind Kejriwal added.
The AAP National Convenor continued with a call to action, urging the Mandal office bearers and party workers to approach the upcoming elections with the same zeal and patriotism as freedom fighters. “This is not just about Delhi. The work done in Delhi has sparked a ray of hope across the country that if an honest government comes to power, everything is possible. If the BJP takes control of the Delhi government, not only will Delhi not survive, but this model, this small plant of hope, will be crushed. The BJP will destroy it, permanently. This upcoming election is about saving that hope, it is about saving Delhi. You don’t need to work as an Aam Aadmi Party worker, but as a patriot in this election. As they say, “cutting edge”—the Mandal In-charge is on the cutting edge, and they will form the team at the booth level. Each Mandal In-charge oversees five booths and will form a team of 11 workers at each booth. Then, they will go door to door to deliver our message. The Mandal In-charge is the most critical. If they treat this as a part-time job, it won’t work. We didn’t form AAP to gain power; we formed it for the country. So, this is about saving the country, and you’ll need to dedicate full time to it.”
He drew parallels between this election and India’s freedom struggle, invoking the names of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev, and Subhas Chandra Bose. “If Bhagat Singh had worked part-time, if Rajguru, Sukhdev, Ashfaqulla Khan had worked part-time, if Subhas Chandra Bose, Babasaheb Ambedkar, or Gandhiji had given only half a day to this, our country wouldn’t have gained independence. This is the second fight for freedom. And in this second fight for freedom, I am proud that our people have gone to jail and come out. I am not worried about whether we come into power or not. My concern is, if we don’t win, what will happen to these schools? Someone asked me, “Arvind, what will happen to you if you don’t win the election?” I said, “That’s not the question. The question is, what will happen to you? What will happen to your family if the Aam Aadmi Party doesn’t win? If we don’t win, electricity rates will increase again. I remember I fasted twice for 15 days in 2012 against the electricity companies’ bills. If the Aam Aadmi Party doesn’t come to power, we’ll have to fast again because electricity rates will rise again. Your roads will break again. Your water will become impure again. Your water bills will skyrocket. Delhi used to experience eight-hour power cuts. In 22 states where the BJP is in power, not a single state has 24-hour electricity. Ask Uttar Pradesh, go to nearby Ghaziabad—do they get 24-hour electricity? No. But Delhi does. So, Delhi will return to the same situation. This election is about saving Delhi.”
He also asked workers to put aside differences and unite under the common goal of saving Delhi. “Many of our workers are here today, even councillors. You might not like your MLA; that’s okay. You don’t have to look at your MLA or the candidate. Just look at Kejriwal. Just vote by looking at me. I will contest on all 70 seats. Don’t look at anyone else—MLA or councillor. I will get your work done, as I have always done. I meet all our workers; I have the phone numbers of more than half of them. Those who message me, call me—I pick up. I will get all your work done, regardless of who the MLA is. Put aside all your little issues. This is not the time for them. If you keep up the internal bickering, you will lose. The enemy is strong. We need to stay united like a fist. If we stay united like a fist, no power can defeat us.”
Concluding, he talked about the open letter he has written to the people of Delhi, outlining the stakes of the upcoming election and urging citizens to continue supporting AAP’s vision for the city. “Now, we need to deliver this letter to every household. Starting tomorrow, from the 20th to the 29th, you have to distribute this letter to every house and shop in Delhi. Train your teams. Sandeep Pathak will tell you how to train, how to distribute, and what to do. I am confident that this time we should get two more seats than last time, not two less.”
At the same time, Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia stated, “the BJP tried hard to break me, Arvind Kejriwal, Satyendar Jain, and AAP by putting us in jail, but they were really trying to break the spirit of our grassroots workers. They thought they could weaken the Mandal heads and the people who have stood by Arvind Kejriwal for the last 10 years.” He said to the Mandal heads, “But your courage never wavered. Despite the pressure, you stood tall and answered those questioning our work with conviction, proving that no corruption happened, no wrongdoing was done. Your strength gave us the resilience to keep going while in jail, and now we are back to continue our work for Delhi.”
“Today, the BJP is starting to realise the ground reality. They tried to stall our progress, but Arvind Kejriwal is back, and things are back on track, pensions are being paid, roads are being built, and the government is delivering again. The real battle is in your hands now, to take Arvind Kejriwal’s message to every household and shop, and remind people that the one-year of BJP’s misrule pales in comparison to the 9 years of good governance under the AAP. Now, it’s clear that if anyone is losing seats in the upcoming elections, it’s the BJP, not us. Together, we will ensure the strength of AAP remains unshaken,” stated the former Deputy CM.
While, Senior AAP leader, Satyendar Jain stated that a question on many minds is why AAP leaders are being arrested repeatedly. “The BJP’s real target was Arvind Kejriwal. They thought if they arrested our leaders like me, Manish Sisodia, and Sanjay Singh, it would break the party. But we stand firm. The formation of AAP, created to serve the people, challenges the existing corrupt system, which is why they fear us. They know Arvind Kejriwal’s honest politics threatens their hold over power.”
Highlighting AAP’s work, Satyendar Jain said, “Our work of building hospitals, Mohalla Clinics, and offering free electricity directly serves the people and disrupts their corrupt practices. Arvind Kejriwal’s government spends just 4% of the budget on electricity, a fraction compared to other states. They want to stop us because we give the savings back to the people. But we will continue our fight. Under Arvind Kejriwal’s leadership, we will win.”
After the meeting, AAP National General Secretary (Organisation) Dr Sandeep Pathak. “These leaders are responsible for organizing activities at their local booths, and the meeting was organized by Arvind Kejriwal to address the current political climate and launch a campaign called “Jan Sampark Abhiyan.” As part of this campaign, Arvind Kejriwal wrote a letter that will be delivered to every household in Delhi.”
Delhi Chief Minister Atishi spoke about how the BJP has tried to destroy the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) by arresting its leaders like Satyendar Jain, Manish Sisodia, and Sanjay Singh. She recalled how, when Satyendar Jain was first arrested, many thought it would be for just a short time, but he ended up being in jail for months. Despite this, AAP leaders did not break under pressure or join the BJP. Atishi emphasized that even though the BJP tried to stop AAP’s work in Delhi by putting their leaders in jail, the party remained strong and continued to fight for the people. She praised AAP volunteers and leaders for standing firm in difficult times and said that their fight is not over yet. Atishi urged everyone to work hard for the upcoming Delhi elections and make sure Arvind Kejriwal is elected Chief Minister for the fourth time, winning all 70 seats in the Assembly. She motivated everyone by saying, “In the upcoming February elections for the Delhi Assembly, we all have to work together to make Arvind Kejriwal Ji the Chief Minister of Delhi for the fourth time.”
In his speech, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh passionately praised AAP leaders for standing strong despite facing imprisonment and mistreatment by the BJP. He said that the BJP tried every trick to destroy AAP by putting its leaders in jail, filing fake cases, and torturing them. He said, “We have said this repeatedly, that to destroy our party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) conspired in every possible way, tried every possible effort, wove every possible plot to end Arvind Kejriwal’s politics.” He mentioned how leaders like Arvind Kejriwal and Satyendar Jain suffered, with Satyendar Jain losing 36 kilograms in jail, but none of them gave up or bowed down. Sanjay Singh criticized the BJP for being hypocritical, accusing them of talking about fighting corruption while aligning with corrupt politicians. He called the BJP a “washing machine” that cleanses corruption for their benefit. Despite these attacks, Sanjay Singh said AAP remained united and would continue to fight the BJP’s politics of hate. He urged supporters to ensure BJP’s defeat in the upcoming elections by winning all 70 seats in Delhi, reminding them that AAP leaders came out of jail stronger than before and ready to keep fighting for their cause.
AAP Delhi Convenor Gopal Rai stated, “we are joined by Satyendar Jain, who worked silently for the people of Delhi. The BJP thought they could break him, but he proved unshakable. Even after being jailed, no one could buy him or break him. His strength stands as an example of our unwavering resolve. The AAP has shown that its leaders remain unbroken and unbowed, no matter how long they are imprisoned. When Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh were arrested, the BJP believed the party would fall, but we made history by standing strong. We’ve broken through the ‘sixth door’, and now, we’re preparing for the last. Arvind Kejriwal is no Duryodhan, he is Arjuna, and no one can defeat him. The time has come for each of you to become the Arjuna of your mandal and work to bring Arvind Kejriwal back as CM of Delhi.”
