VARANASI: Pitching his ‘aam-aadmi’ credentials, Arvind Kejriwal today hit out at Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi for their “helicopter democracy” while projecting himself as an “honest” alternative.
On his way to file his nomination papers for the Lok Sabha polls from this holy city, the AAP leader highlighted the “massive” spending in the advertisement campaigns for BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate and Congress Vice President and asked people to decide what kind of democracy they want.
“Somebody was saying that Modi is spending Rs 5000 crore in advertisements. Gandhi is also spending a lot of money. You watch TV, read newspapers, see billboards, they are there and everywhere. If he (Modi) is elected to power, he will make at least Rs 5 lakh crore.
“I am a fakir. I have no money. I will run a campaign on your money. You decide what do you want,” he told a road show.
Accusing Gandhi of cheating the people of Amethi, Kejriwal said people told him that they kept electing the “family” member in hope their constituency will be developed.
“Nothing happened and they feel cheated,” he said.
“They (people) don’t get to see him. They see only his helicopter flying in the sky. I hope it does not happen in Varanasi that you are pointed to a flying chopper and told that your leader (Modi) is there….You decide if you want helicopter democracy or somebody who goes to villages and mohallas” he said.
Kejriwal is contesting against Modi in the high profile UP constituency.
Describing the Lok Sabha polls as a fight to “save democracy”, Kejriwal appealed to the people here for “bringing change” in the political system and root out corruption.
“Please do not allow yourself to be betrayed here in Varanasi. This is not my fight. This is a fight for all those who dream of a corruption-free India. This is a fight for getting good roads in Benaras. This is a fight to rid the Ganga of pollution,” the AAP leader said amid cheers by his supporters.
Addressing a road show at Azad Park in the heart of Varanasi, Kejriwal came down hard on both Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi accusing them of spending huge sums of money to win the elections and exhorted people to defeat both the leaders.
The AAP leader’s cavalcade took almost two hours to cover a distance of around 2 km as large crowds greeted him along the way to the District Magistrate’s office.
Kejriwal, who has challenged Modi here, said that when he was campaigning in Amethi for fellow party leader Kumar Vishwas, people told him that Gandhi family has “betrayed” them as no development work has taken place in the constituency for the last 30 years.
“They said what is the use of voting for Rahul Gandhi who is only seen in helicopters,” Kejriwal said addressing hundreds of supporters.
The AAP leader also attacked Modi for his proposed visit to Benaras Hindu University to pay tribute to Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya’s statue before filing nomination here tomorrow.
“Malaviyaji, never allowed any political person or police to enter the BHU campus. But tomorrow Modi and scores of his supporters and large number of security personnel will enter the university campus. It will be against the principles of Malaviyaji,” Kejriwal said.
“From BHU, the BJP leader will take a chopper to go to Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith. It is surprising. Why can’t he travel by road to Kashi. He would have known the state of the city…People of Varanasi will have to decide what kind of democracy they want,” he said.
The road show triggered massive traffic jams across the city.
Last month Kejriwal had announced to contest in Varanasi after BJP’s decision to field Modi from the city, considered one of the most prestigious constituencies in Uttar Pradesh.
Kejriwal, who had led his fledging AAP to a spectacular victory in the Delhi Assembly polls in December last year, has been trying to replicate the “successful Delhi campaign model” here by holding scores of road shows and corner meetings across Varanasi.
Hundreds of AAP volunteers are also visiting door-to-door to garner support from people in this holy city where BJP has been running an “aggressive campaign” to consolidate its vote bank. In 2009 Lok Sabha elections, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi had won the seat defeating Mukhtar Ansari by a margin of 17,000 votes.
Quami Ekta Dal’s Ansari, who is known to have a strong support base among Muslims, has decided not to contest against Modi from the seat “to avoid division of secular votes”.
The four-time MLA from Mau is currently lodged in Agra jail in the BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai murder case.
Congress candidate Ajay Rai, a Varanasi local, is an MLA from Pindra assembly constituency.
Samajwadi Party’s Kailash Chaurasiya is also a sitting MLA from nearby Mirzapur.
Both Rai and Chaurasiya have already filed their nominations.
The entry of Modi and Kejriwal has escalated political temperatures in the ‘battle for Benares’ turning it to be one of the most keenly watched contest in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.-PTI
