New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal held a road show in Gwalior on Saturday to sound the poll bugle for upcoming Madhya Pradesh assembly elections. Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kejriwal spoke about the list of freebies that the government ensured in Delhi and Punjab, including in electricity, education, medical, free travel for women, free pilgrimage for elderly, generating employment for 12 lakh youths, and asked what bothers the Prime Minister if he doles out these benefits amid hike in prices of essential items.
"PM Modi got livid when we (AAP government) started providing free electricity till 200 units and said we are giving 'free revdis'. I would like to tell him 'Yes, we are giving free revdis'. We are giving seven 'free revdis' to the people of Delhi," Kejriwal said.
"PM Modi has caused so much inflation in the country. If I have done something to bring a smile to people's faces, then what wrong have I done? There's inflation everywhere. Salaries have not increased but prices of milk, vegetables, flour, rice, and everything else are high. The prices have risen because the government is looting the people," the AAP supremo further said.
Meanwhile, a team of deputy election commissioners will visit the poll-bound state next week to take stock of the preparedness for the assembly elections slated for October-November, news agency PTI reported. As per the report, the team is likely to be in Bhopal for two days beginning Monday.
Notably, Election Commission officials had earlier visited four other states going to polls later this year -- Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Rajasthan -- to review the preparations.
Meanwhile, a survey by ABP-CVoter has revealed a close contest between BJP and Congress in Madhya Pradesh, with both parties expected to get 44 per cent of the vote share.
The survey shows that Mayawati's BSP is expected to garner two per cent of the votes while other parties and independents may bag almost 10 per cent.
In terms of seats, the survey puts Congress marginally ahead, giving the grand old party anywhere between 108-120 seats if the polls were held today. BJP, which will contest the upcoming polls under the leadership of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, is expected to secure 106-118 seats.
In case of a hung assembly, the support of independents will be crucial for both the parties.