Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today launched a new campaign 'Jail Ka Jawab Vote Se'. The slogan will be the crux of the party’s campaigning not just in Delhi but other states as well.
“This is the primary slogan which will be integrated into other campaigns,” said Sandeep Pathak, AAP Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab, while launching the campaign in Delhi. He said that Delhi Chief Minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal was arrested as part of a big conspiracy. “It is the first time that a sitting chief minister has been arrested during the Lok Sabha polls. We are launching the campaign 'Jail Ka Jawab Vote Se' and we want you to empower Kejriwal,” said Pathak. AAP Delhi convener Gopal Rai asked people to respond to “dictatorship” with their votes.
This comes a month after the AAP had launched ‘Sansad Mein Bhi Kejriwal’ campaign on March 8 in the presence of Kejriwal, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in connection with the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy. He is currently lodged in Tihar jail.
The shift in the slogan indicates that the AAP is restrategising its poll campaigns with the arrest of Kejriwal. While raking up the arrest, the AAP is also focusing on the welfare push more assertively. “Remember the face of Arvind Kejriwal when you go out and vote in the elections,” urged senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh, who has been aggressively targeting the ruling BJP ever since he came out on bail last week. Singh was arrested in the liquor policy case in October last year. He was granted bail by the Supreme Court on April 2.
Singh, in his appeal, listed the welfare steps taken by the AAP in Delhi. “Remember your zero electricity bill, air conditioned schools for your children, mohalla clinics for your ailing, free rides for women in bus, pilgrimage facilities for your elderly and Farishtay scheme in hospitals when you go out and vote,” said Singh, “If Arvind Kejriwal will not be there who will give you all this?”
As part of the campaign, Pathak said, AAP leaders and workers will visit the four Lok Sabha constituencies from where it has fielded candidates. “Our workers will go to every house and tell the reality to the people of Delhi. Door-to-door campaigning will begin from today.” AAP and Congress are contesting the polls together in Delhi. While the AAP is fighting from four seats – New Delhi, South Delhi, West Delhi, and East Delhi, on the remaining three seats – Chandni Chowk, North East Delhi, and North West Delhi – Congress will take on the BJP.
Interestingly, Singh said that even on seats where the AAP is not contesting, their party will support the candidates of the INDIA bloc committedly. “Each and every worker of the party will extend their full support to the INDIA alliance wherever they are fighting elections, including Uttar Pradesh,” said Singh.
