Senior AAP leaders turned Chandni Mahal into a political flashpoint on Thursday, telling voters that this bypoll is their chance to punish betrayal and reclaim their mandate. Addressing packed gatherings in Ward 76, Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj, MP Sanjay Singh, former minister and Gujarat Prabhari Gopal Rai, and former minister Imran Hussain urged residents to rally behind the party’s candidate.
The AAP Delhi State President warned that the BJP has resorted to desperate tactics by fielding a “circus lion” to defeat AAP, but insisted that the outcome is already clear. He told voters that on 30 November they will elect their councillor, and two months later the people of Matia Mahal will elect a new MLA after the sitting MLA’s rebellion leads to his inevitable disqualification, opening the door for the public to choose a representative who truly stands with them.
Addressing a gathering, AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj stated, “There is a circus lion in Chandni Mahal. The circus belongs to the BJP and the lion is dancing at the BJP’s signal. At Turkman Gate, the lion flags are everywhere and they belong to the Congress. Whenever we put up the Aam Aadmi Party flag, the BJP’s Election Commission immediately arrives. The BJP no longer breaks into parties directly.”
He continued, “Earlier, the BJP used to horse-trade MLAs. Now the BJP splits parties. In Maharashtra, they created a new party by placing Sharad Pawar’s nephew right in front of him and his nephew said that they were the real NCP. The same was done with Shiv Sena. They placed Shiv Sena’s own man in front of the party and split it in two. This was done to weaken the opposition and form a BJP government.”
Highlighting similar attempts in Delhi, Saurabh Bharadwaj said, “The BJP is carrying out this conspiracy everywhere and the same conspiracy is being carried out in Delhi. They are trying to weaken the Aam Aadmi Party and the opposition. There was a time when the MLA from Matia Mahal became so arrogant that he said even if he fielded a water bottle from Matia Mahal, they would make that bottle both a MLA and a councillor. This arrogance existed because he considered the people of Matia Mahal his slaves. Today we have fielded a person who has been serving you for 12 years and serving the party. People are not attending his gatherings anymore and now both father and son are going door to door asking for votes.”
Referring to the upcoming by-election, he added, “On 30 November, the people of Chandni Mahal will elect their councillor. Because of the person who rebelled against the party, the law of the country mandates that the MLA here will lose his position within two months. A new MLA will also be elected within two months. No one’s ‘gundagardi’ will work here. If anyone is scared, tell them clearly that on 2 December the councillor will be elected and within two months we will also elect a good and honest Member of the Legislative Assembly who will serve the people.”
Meanwhile, senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh stated, “The two biggest goons in this country, whom I call ‘Ranga-Billa,’ sit in Parliament. We fight them. Are these people doing ‘gundagardi’ in the streets and neighbourhoods? I want to remind everyone that in the 2020 Assembly elections, the Aam Aadmi Party worked day and night to get the father elected from here. In the next election, the son was made a MLA. The councillor election was won. For the Deputy Mayor election, we fought through the night. Today this is the reward for that hard work that they are conspiring to defeat Muddasir Usman Qureshi. This time, show them by winning that the real strength of the people of Chandni Mahal is something else. The people of Chandni Mahal will elect the Aam Aadmi Party candidate and answer the MLA of Matia Mahal for his rebellion.”
Referring to recent political developments, Sanjay Singh said, “Recently the election results in Bihar came and the National Democratic Alliance won more than 200 seats. BJP people are distributing laddoos across the country. They sent Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain to jail and kept me in jail for 183 days. Even then our leaders are not scared and continue fighting these goons. Now the decision is in the hands of the people. If the people want BJP workers to distribute laddoos in Delhi too, then they can elect someone else. And if they want the BJP to hang its head in shame, then elect Muddasir Usman Qureshi from Chandni Mahal with a massive margin.”
On the other hand, former minister and Gujarat Prabhari Gopal Rai stated, “At this moment, four candidates are roaming in Chandni Mahal ward asking for votes. One candidate is the Aam Aadmi Party’s Muddasir Usman Qureshi. The second is the Congress candidate, third is the BJP candidate and the fourth is this ‘fake lion’ who is roaming every street asking for votes.”
Urging people to apply reason, he emphasised, “Think with a calm mind. Can the Congress candidate win from Chandni Mahal? He cannot win and neither can the BJP candidate win from Chandni Mahal. The BJP knows very well that the lotus cannot bloom here. That is why the BJP created a plan to field a Muslim face whose remote control would remain with them. An independent nomination form was filed and the ‘fake lion’ was allotted as the election symbol. This is the reason his flags never tear and the entire administration is backing him.”
