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He was speaking at the AAP’s ’Ek Shaam Shaheedon Ke Naam’ event to pay tributes to freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev to commemorate Shaheedi Diwas.
AAP Chief Arvind Kejriwal. (ANI)
Former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday lashed out at the current BJP-led Delhi government and accused it of disregarding the legacy of Bhagat Singh Bhimrao Ambedkar after coming to power in the national capital.
While addressing the party’s ‘Ek Shaam Shaheedon Ke Naam’ event to pay tributes to freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev to commemorate Shaheedi Diwas in New Delhi, Kejriwal recalled an incident when he was in jail and had wrote a letter to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena to allow Atishi to hoist the national flag on his behalf.
However, he claimed that his letter never reached the LG and, instead got a show-cause notice for writing the letter.
“The letters that Bhagat Singh had written from jail had a lot against the British, yet the British used to send them to his comrades. When I was in jail, I wrote a letter to LG that I was in jail, so Atishi should be allowed to hoist the flag. There was nothing wrong with this. I gave a letter to the jail superintendent, but the letter did not reach LG, and I got a show cause notice that how dare I write such a letter. Bhagat Singh had the freedom to write any letter, but I could not write a letter of two lines. You (BJP) are worse than the British…” he said as quoted by news agency ANI.
#WATCH | Delhi | Aam Aadmi Party national convenor Arvind Kejriwal says, “Whatever dreams the freedom fighters had in their minds, not even a single dream of theirs is being fulfilled today… The letters that Bhagat Singh had written from jail had a lot against the British, yet… pic.twitter.com/njQ4xJciIh— ANI (@ANI) March 23, 2025
“Our role models are Babasaheb Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh. Bhagat Singh used to say that merely removing the British was not enough, the structure of society had to change. Otherwise, brown rulers would replace the British. This is exactly what has happened,” Kejriwal added.
In his first notable public appearance since his party’s debacle in the Delhi assembly polls last month, Kejriwal further claimed that within 48 hours of assuming power in Delhi, the BJP removed portraits of Bhagat Singh and Ambedkar from government offices.
“I want to ask them if there is anyone who has sacrificed more for the country than Bhagat Singh,” he said.
The AAP chief emphasised that the party entered politics to fulfil the dreams of Bhagat Singh and Ambedkar, and not for power.
Kejriwal also criticised the BJP government for allegedly restricting the free bus ride scheme for women in Delhi. Bus conductors are now denying free pink tickets to women unless they download an app, the former chief minister claimed.
“Why are they doing this? Instead of improving facilities, they are withdrawing the existing ones. should have started giving Rs 2,500 to women but they have not,” he said, accusing the BJP of failing to fulfil its poll promises.
Were The Photos Removed From Govt Offices?
The BJP had refuted the claims of replacing the photos of Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh with those of Mahatma Gandhi, President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, from the Chief Minister’s office.
The party’s Delhi unit had shared a photo of Delhi CMO on its X handle showing the portraits of both the freedom fighters in the office. However, they have been placed at a different space.
“The chambers of the Chief Minister of Delhi, Mrs @gupta_rekha and all the ministers are adorned with the pictures of revered Mahatma Gandhi, Baba Saheb Bhimrao Ambedkar, Bhagat Singh, His Excellency the President and the Prime Minister,” it said.
The BJP returned to power in Delhi after 26 years, ending the AAP government’s decade-long rule. It ousted AAP from power winning 48 of the 70 seats in the Delhi Assembly, in the polls held last month.
(With inputs from agencies)