In sharp rebuttal to the BJP’s allegations on Delhi’s budget, senior AAP leader and former Delhi CM Atishi has pointed out that in just ten years under Arvind Kejriwal’s leadership, Delhi’s budget grew from ₹30,000 crore to ₹77,000 crore—a testament to AAP’s sound governance. Now, with a fiscally strong government handed over to the BJP, excuses won’t cut it. The people of Delhi expect delivery, not delays. But as expected, the BJP has already begun looking for ways to wriggle out of its grand “guarantees” and promises.
Responding to a question, senior AAP leader and former Delhi CM Atishi dismissed BJP’s allegations that the Delhi government’s treasury was empty, asserting that AAP had left behind a fiscally robust administration. She said, “I had expected that from the moment the BJP government was formed, it would start making excuses to avoid fulfilling its so-called guarantees and promises to the people of Delhi. That is why, even before the new Chief Minister took oath, I had placed the financial figures of the Delhi government before the public and the nation. Let me reiterate them once again.”
The former CM highlighted Delhi’s financial growth under AAP’s tenure. “When AAP formed the government in 2015, Delhi’s total budget was only ₹30,000 crore. This budget was entirely funded by Delhi’s own revenue—through GST and excise collection—without receiving a single rupee from the central government,” she said.
Atishi highlighted that over the past ten years, under the honest and efficient leadership of Arvind Kejriwal, this budget grew to ₹77,000 crore by 2024. That is more than two and a half times the 2015 budget. “I challenge the BJP to name a single state governed by them, apart from Delhi, where the budget has grown two and a half times in a decade,” she asserted.
Atishi further underlined AAP’s success in maintaining Delhi’s financial health. “One of the key indicators of a government’s financial strength is its debt-to-GDP ratio—how much debt a government carries as a percentage of its GDP. When AAP took charge, Delhi’s debt-to-GDP ratio was over 6%. In ten years, we reduced it to just 3%, probably the lowest in the country. Additionally, the 2022 CAG report clearly states that Delhi is the only state in India that has been running in profit since 2015.”
Atishi urged the BJP government to focus on delivering on its promises instead of making excuses. “After ten years of AAP rule, we have handed over a fiscally strong and growing government to the BJP. The people of Delhi have placed their trust in you and given you a mandate. Instead of making excuses, fulfill the promises you made to them.”
