AAP National Convenor and Delhi Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday addressed a rally in the city's Ramlila Maidan that has been organised against the ordinance promulgated by the Centre over control of services in the national capital. Taking a veiled jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kejriwal said that they have gathered there to 'defeat an arrogant dictator'. He said that the stage of Ramlila Maidan is pious as 12 years back they united there against corruption and today they have 'to remove a dictator'.
Slamming the Centre over the ordinance to take back control of services in the national capital, Kejriwal said, "They have insulted the people of Delhi. I have been told that such an Ordinance will be brought by the Centre for other states as well."
"This (Ordinance) is sheer disrespect of the people of Delhi. They (BJP) insult me, abuse me every day," Kejriwal said.
He further said that the Modi government rejected the decision of the Supreme Court to take away the rights of the people of Delhi. Referring to people, Kejriwal said that at least 'you should have chosen an educated PM'.
Taking a jibe at the recent decision of the government to stop the circulation of Rs 2000 notes, he said that one day they say Rs 2000 notes will come, and five years later, they said that Rs 2000 notes will be stopped from circulation.
On the issue of now-rolled back farm laws, he said that somebody once asked the 'King' to make some laws, so he did, and thousands of farmers to the streets. "Then people said that take back the laws, the King took it back", Kejriwal added. He likened PM Modi with a '4th pass King' of his story aimed to attack the Prime Minister and his various decisions.
He also attacked the CM over the ongoing tussle between the wrestlers and Wrestling Federation of India Chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Addressing Singh as PM Modi's 'friend' and referring to the PM as an 'illiterate King', Kejriwal said, "Another friend of the King was so close to him that despite misbehaving with international level women players, he got saved."
"Another friend's son killed farmers under his car and yet he was saved," Kejriwal added referring to Ajay Mishra Teni whose son allegedly killed some farmers by mauling them under his four-wheeler in UP's Lakhimpur Kheri during farmers' protest.
"They put Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain in jail to stop work, we have 100 Sisodias, 100 Jains. We don't have one Manish Sisodia, we have hundreds of Manish Sisodias; we don't have one Satyendar Jain, we have hundreds of Satyendar Jains. The work of development in Delhi won't stop," the Delhi CM said.
This comes a day after National Conference leader and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah took a swipe at Kejriwal for trying to gather support against Centre's ordinance. Abdullah asked where Kejriwal was when the Centre scrapped Article 370 from the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. He said that the AAP convenor backed the government then and now asking for support from other parties.
The comments were a reaction to the Delhi CM reaching out to leaders of various political parties across the country to gain a majority in the Upper House to nullify the ordinance.
Speaking to the media persons in Rajouri, Abdullah said, "Where was Arvind Kejriwal when Article 370 was scrapped? He supported the govt that time and today he is asking for support from other parties."
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal met Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow on Wednesday and received an assurance from the Samajwadi Party chief on support against the Centre's ordinance on the control of services. The national convener of the Aam Aadmi Party has been reaching out to leaders of the Opposition parties to garner their support against the ordinance so that the Centre's bid to replace it through a Bill is defeated when it is brought in Parliament.
"The ordinance is anti-democratic. I want to assure CM Arvind Kejriwal that Samajwadi Party is with you and will support you," Akhilesh Yadav said.
Kejriwal said the ordinance can be defeated in Rajya Sabha if non-BJP parties unite and it would send a strong message to the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
So far, CM Kejriwal held a meeting with his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee, former Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, Telangana CM KCR, Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin, Nationalist Congress Party supremo Sharad Pawar, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and his deputy Tejashwi Yadav.