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New Delhi: Anti-corruption activist Arvind Kejriwal Tuesday made his
political debut with a party, whose name is to be announced next
month, and called for a "dharam yudh" in country as he unveiled
his party's vision document which he said represented the "aam
admi".
"This is not my party. This is your party not mine... it is a
party of the people of this country. People are fed up of
corruption," Kejriwal said at the Constitution Club.
The official name of the party will be declared on Nov 26.
"There is a dharam yudh in this country. Everyone has to take
sides. Our country has become a nation of VIPs. Now there will be
only one VIP in this country. The aam aadmi," he said, donning a
Gandhi cap with "Mein hoon aam admi, mujhe chahiye Janlokpal" (I
am common man, I want Jan Lokpal) printed on it.
"This cap gives us respect. I will wear this for the rest of my
life, " he said.
He also announced his party would contest assembly elections in
Delhi next year.
The outlines of the vision document titled "Quest for Swaraj" are
similar to what his mentor Anna Hazare is also fighting for,
though the two have chosen different paths.
The document lists setting up of a powerful Jan Lokpal or
ombudsman, electoral reforms, decision making "shifted to or
proximate to the people", not allowing education for profit,
government to take responsibility for universal healthcare, among
other things.
The document was released along with other colleagues of the
erstwhile Team Anna .
"Democracy is when the people rule the country. We have to change
the system where everyone who comes into power becomes greedy. We
don't want to change the faces, we want to change the system. We
have to change the system within 10-15 days. I used to work in the
I-T dept. I know how it works," he said to applause.
"This is just a trailer. Once the party is launched, the full
picture will be seen," activist and key member Yogendra Yadav said
referring to the document.
Shanti Bhushan, Prashant Bhushan, and Manish Sisodia were the
other key members present.
The vision document is, however, to be edited after more
consultations, Manish Sisodia said.
Kejriwal, who was among those who drafted the Team Anna's Jan
Lokpal bill, had announced launch of his political party last
month. However, it resulted in a break with Anna Hazare, the face
of the campaign. Hazare on Monday denied any differences with
Kejriwal and said he would support him if he contested against
Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal.
Discussing his political outfit, Kejriwal said: "People will give
us money - they will campaign, they will fight the elections."
Replying to a question on Hazare supporting the outfit, Kejriwal
said: "It is a test for us. If we put up good candidates, Anna
will support."
In a challenge to the Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit,
Kejriwal announced a massive campaign against high electricity
bills. "People should not pay electricity bills, and if the
government disconnects anyone's electricity, we will reconnect it.
I am ready to go to jail. We will not just gherao (lay siege to)
chief minister's (Sheila Dikshit) residence, but will disconnect
her electricity," Kejriwal announced.
He threatened to hold a protest here Sunday if the state
government did not announce a rollback of the electricity tariff
hike.
He also said he would disclose corruption cases against some
leading political figures Saturday.
"On Oct 6, we will reveal corruption charges we have against two
very important people in this country. We have a lot of evidence
against them," he said.
Kejriwal said both the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
were working in tandem. "They work in tandem, there is no
opposition in the country. We are the opposition."
The BJP welcomed launch of his political party, saying all Indians
have the right to contest elections.
"There are so many political parties and it is good they are
floating a party. All citizens have the right to form a party and
contest elections," said BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain.
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