Kejri slams PM for note ban failure

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the demonetisation move and called it a failure even as Modi supporters heckled him at the start of the event in North Delhi.

Kejriwal, who was addressing members of Chamber of Bawana Industrialists on adverse impact of demonetisation on their trade, said that Modi's note ban has failed on all four counts – checking corruption, stopping black money, stopping fake currency and blocking terror funding.

In a stinging speech, the AAP convenor repeated exhorted the crowd to spread the "real truth" behind the currency ban, which he described as a "conspiracy" and "scam" implemented to favour the corporates.

“I have always backed Modiji on good issues. Swachcha Bharat, Yoga or Surgical strikes. But when he does something wrong like demonetisation he cannot escape criticism,” said Kejriwal.

If demonetisation was the solution to check black money and corruption, I would have myself shouted slogans hailing Modi, he said.

Workers are facing lay off, industries are locking out, farmers cannot sow seeds and over 80 people have lost their lives due to demonetisation problems, he said.

The Chief Minister narrated the tale of a farmer who was forced to commit suicide as he could not withdraw his own money from bank for his daughter's wedding.

He said he had come armed with Income Tax department papers that would nail the lies of Modi.

We have fought against corruption and even endangered our lives for it. I fasted for 10 days despite being a diabetic. It must have been some supernatural power that helped me fast as a diabetic cannot fast for more than two days, he said.

I have shared corruption proof against Robert Vadra, son-in-law of Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi, Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani earlier, he said.

He also took a pot shot at former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit and said he would even get after her for Statehood issue

Refeferring to a purported statement made by Delhi BJP Chief Manoj Tiwari, which Tiwari denied having made, Kejriwal said that by denying statehood to the national capital, BJP wants the people of Delhi to remain “second class.”

The Delhi BJP chief, said Kejriwal, in his “hurry” to lodge his opposition, was latching on to a “false report”.

The online exchange started with Kejriwal’s tweet: “This is insulting to the people of Delhi. BJP does not want to give Delhiites the rights to be full citizens, want to keep them as second class citizens in their own country.”

Tiwari, who recently replaced Satish Upadhyay as BJP’s Delhi President, tagged Kejriwal in his reply, saying he would send him “the complete video tomorrow”.

“At least listen to the complete statement. Why the hurry in opposing? I will send you the complete video tomorrow. You have latched on to a false report again,” Tiwari tweeted.

Tiwary later said the party was in favour of statehood for Delhi but stressed that there was a need to determine its limits.

“The issue of statehood for Delhi was mentioned in our election manifesto. We support statehood, but one should also keep in mind that Delhi is not just the capital of any state, but the entire nation.

“Therefore, the limits of statehood, especially in light of Kejriwal’s protest in Delhi ahead of Republic Day celebrations in 2014, must be determined,” Tiwari said.
Since storming to power, the Aam Aadmi Party government has repeatedly clashed with the Centre over the contentious issue of granting statehood to Delhi.

The government had also a released a draft bill on statehood in May.
However, there has been no progress on that front.
DHNS/PTI