We are focusing on intimate gatherings to reach voters, says BJP's Ashish Sood

A former municipal councillor and now the Bharatiya Janata Party's MLA candidate from Janakpuri Assembly constituency, Ashish Sood is well into the thick of his campaign, focusing on intimate interactions with voters and local issues. In an exclusive interview with Abhinay Lakshman of Millennium Post, Sood explains what it means for him to be fielded from his home seat, what his aim for Janakpuri is and how he plans to address the issue of residents if elected. Excerpts:

What are some of the local issues you will be focusing on during the campaign?

Look, I am focusing on replacing current sewer and power lines which are more than 45 years old, creating public spaces for both youngsters and senior citizens and covering up the Pankha Road drain with special permission from the NGT. I am also looking to build incubation centres where youngsters can build their start-ups in addition to getting all community centres air-conditioned.

How would you convince voters who are satisfied with AAP's freebie schemes?

See it's not like everybody is happy with this. We are talking to people and there are only a few left with that belief. People are now concerned about whether their local representatives have fulfilled their promises or not. Voters ask me where the promised sanitation system is and where the schools and hospitals are and why there are still open drains with poor sewer systems. They are concerned about dysfunctional CCTV cameras and security.

Will the anti-CAA/NRC protests be something you will address in your campaign? Why?

The CAA is a very important issue because there are a lot of refugee families here who have seen and lived through the partition. Ours is a formula of a combination. We want to focus on hyper-local issues but also connect with voters on

why it's important to give citizenship to the refugees who were subjected to third-grade treatment for decades. But of course, we will also focus on how the AAP-government has failed them.

What is your campaign strategy like for the upcoming polls?

See, we are looking at intimate gatherings to reach out to the voters here. Small drawing-room meetings and gatherings at parking spaces in the colonies provide for a unique opportunity to connect with residents personally. We are confident that we will get to all sections of society and we have been working on creating such networks for over a year now.