Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s 9th padyatra in Mangalpuri drew a massive crowd, signalling strong support despite the BJP’s attempts to suppress the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders. After offering prayers at the Shri Krishna Temple and performing Ma Kali’s evening aarti, the former Deputy CM boldly declared that AAP is undeterred by the BJP’s false cases and imprisonment.
“We are not afraid of their jails,” Manish Sisodia told the cheering crowd, vowing that both he and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will continue the work of transforming Delhi, no matter the obstacles.
AAP MLA Rakhi Birla, several councillors and other leaders and workers were also present on the occasion.
Interacting with the public during the padyatra in Mangolpuri, Senior AAP Leader Manish Sisodia said, “People are coming to me and saying that you are working like revolutionaries. But the real revolutionaries are our workers. When one of those comrades went to jail, it gave sleepless nights to the BJP for 17 months. This is the real revolution,” he said.
Manish Sisodia said due to the political revolution that all of you together have brought about in Delhi in the last 10 years, the revolution of education, health, and free electricity has become possible in Delhi today. “Instead of stopping, the group of revolutionaries of the Aam Aadmi Party is moving towards Punjab, Goa, and Gujarat. Frightened by this, the BJP tried to stop us by implicating us in false cases. The court also reprimanded the BJP’s agencies for what they are doing. But even after this, the BJP did not stop and put me and Sanjay Singh in jail on fake charges and conspired to implicate Arvind Kejriwal and send him to jail,” he said.
Manish Sisodia said that the BJP had made full preparations to ensure that they would not let us out of jail in any way before the Delhi Assembly elections. “They put all our leaders in jail and later say, ‘Look, we are coming at number one.’ These people were trying to become number one without any race. But the BJP had forgotten that there is a Constitution and a Supreme Court in this country. The Supreme Court ensured the victory of truth and justice in the country. God made truth prevail, and today I am among you.”
Manish Sisodia said when the temperature was 52 degrees in Delhi, I used to sleep on a carpet under the fan in a small cell of the jail. But I do not say that I have suffered. “I am ready to stay in jail, not just for 17 months, but for however long it takes to improve the schools of Delhi and to provide a good education to every child in the country. I am not afraid of their jails. I wasn’t afraid for 17 months,” he said.
The senior AAP leader said many media people are now asking me, ‘You have come out of jail smiling; are you not afraid?’ I replied to them that when I have not done anything wrong, what would I be afraid of? “A person will only be afraid of going to jail if he has committed some theft. If he is not a thief, he will come out smiling like me. I was not afraid because outside, all our workers, councillors, MLAs, and MPs kept fighting unitedly like a fist for 17 months. The BJP tried hard to break the Aam Aadmi Party, but no one broke,” he said.
Addressing the party workers, the Delhi former deputy chief minister said that the Aam Aadmi Party has come out of many crises. “Many troubles befell our MLAs and MPs. But when a big crisis befell the entire party, that crisis was averted because of our honesty and sincerity. In a few days, the most popular leader of Delhi and the country, Arvind Kejriwal, will also come out and be among us. You people should welcome Arvind Kejriwal with the same enthusiasm,” he said.
Manish Sisodia said Arvind Kejriwal is going to come out with more smiles and enthusiasm than me. “Your morale is going to increase further. You guys worked very hard and fought a lot for 17 months, protesting at many places. When I came out, I said that I would go among you all and thank you for this fight. And today I am among you.”
The senior AAP leader further said that there is a lot of enthusiasm among the people of Delhi regarding this padyatra. “I have been released from jail after 17 months, and soon Arvind Kejriwal will also come out. During the padyatra, people are telling me that the BJP has committed atrocities against us. People are happy that I have come out; they are also happy thinking that soon Arvind Kejriwal is also going to come out. Arvind Kejriwal has struggled for 9 years to get the work done for the people of Delhi. When he comes out, he will fight and complete the work that has been stalled by the BJP with the same determination,” he added.
Regarding the BJP workers standing with black flags during the padyatra, Manish Sisodia tweeted that the BJP is horrified by the unwavering love and immense support received from the people of Delhi during his padyatra. “Today there is a padyatra in Mangolpuri. The BJP has made its entire district team stand on the road with black flags. BJP people, come with black flags, we are coming with love in our hearts. We will hug you lovingly too.”
People warmly welcome Manish Sisodia
Manish Sisodia’s padyatra is receiving tremendous love and support from the public. When the padyatra reached Mangolpuri on Tuesday, people welcomed him enthusiastically with garlands and by showering flower petals. During this time, many supporters were carrying cutouts of Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia. Former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, moving forward with the workers, met all the women, children, youth, elderly, shopkeepers, and rickshaw pullers. Throughout the padyatra, slogans like ‘Have worked, will work’, ‘We will not be afraid of dictatorship’ and “Manish Sisodia has come, Kejriwal ji will come” kept resonating.
Performs aarti in temple and gets blessings
Manish Sisodia, the father of Delhi’s education revolution, who reached the Mangolpuri Assembly on the 9th day of the padyatra, offered prayers at Shri Krishna Temple and performed the evening aarti of Kali Mata in the local temple. The mahant (priest) of the temple chanted mantras, applied tilak on his forehead, and tied kalava on his hand. During this, local Aam Aadmi Party MLA Rakhi Birla, councillors, and workers were present with him.
Faces of children lit up after meeting Father of Education Revolution
During the padyatra, a large number of schoolchildren also came to meet their beloved ‘Uncle Manish’. The children welcomed him by presenting him with roses and took autographs. The children thanked Manish Sisodia for making the government schools wonderful. During this, Sisodia asked the children about their studies. Many children touched his feet and took blessings.