Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday accused the BJP of attempting to sabotage his government’s work in education and health sectors through the arrest of Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain and asserted that AAP leaders Atishi
and Saurabh Bharadwaj who will be inducted into his Cabinet will perform with double the speed.
“If Manish Sisodia joins BJP today, won’t he be released tomorrow,” Kejriwal said and targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his first remarks after Sisodia and Jain who have been arrested on charges of corruption resigned from the cabinet.
The people who brought laurels for the country from across the world were put behind bars by Prime Minister Modi, the AAP supremo alleged.
The chief minister claimed that there is no scam in excise policy and it is an excuse to stall the good work being done in the national Capital.
“But, I assure the people of Delhi that this will not happen. The Aam Aadmi Party is a storm. We will be unstoppable and our time has come,” Kejriwal said.
Addressing a press conference after the meeting with party MLAs and councillors, Kejriwal asserted that not only AAP, but the whole country is proud of Jain and Sisodia.
They have brought fame to the country across the world, he said, adding that Jain gave the model of mohalla clinics in primary healthcare to the entire world.
Sisodia transformed government schools and even the wife of the then US president Donald Trump came to see them in 2020.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to stop the good work being done in Delhi. But I want to tell people that the work will happen at double speed. Atishi and Saurabh Bhardwaj, who will soon join the Cabinet, are educated people who will carry on the good work at double the speed,” Kejriwal said.
On whether there will be a deputy chief minister, Kejriwal said, “If the need arises, we shall see.”
On Tuesday, Delhi’s Revenue Minister Kailash Gahlot was given the additional charge of finance and power while Social Welfare Minister Raaj Kumar Anand will be handling education and health departments till new ministers are appointed in the Cabinet.
Kejriwal said that the much-awaited inauguration of the Ashram flyover extension will be held soon.
The flyover extension was scheduled to be inaugurated on February 28.
At a press conference, Kejriwal rejected claims that Sisodia’s arrest was the reason behind the postponement of the inauguration.
“It might be inaugurated. The postponement was not due to Sisodia (arrest). But a few works remain which would be completed in three-four days.”
However, a senior government official had earlier said the inauguration was postponed in light of Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s arrest.
“The flyover extension was supposed to be thrown open to the public on Tuesday and had got the date from the chief minister’s office. But in light of the recent developments,
we will now have to seek a new date from his office. The work on the flyover extension
has been completed,” an official said.
The flyover will allow passengers to bypass three traffic lights between Ashram Chowk and DND, making vehicular movement smoother, according to officials.
At present, vehicles coming and going from Noida and Ghaziabad to South Delhi have to grapple with congestion while travelling from the DND loop to the Ashram intersection.
The construction work of the flyover extension started in June 2020 after the project was approved by the
Cabinet. The total cost of the project is Rs 128.25 crore while the total length of the flyover including the ramp is 1,425 metres.