Kejriwal to resign as Delhi chief minister, calls for early elections

DELHI chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Sunday that he would step down from his position in two days and call for early elections in Delhi.

He said that he would not resume his role as chief minister until the public grants him a "certificate of honesty."

Kejriwal, who was released on bail from Tihar Jail on Friday in connection with the excise policy graft case, mentioned that a meeting with AAP MLAs would take place in the next couple of days to decide who will take over as the next chief minister.

He demanded that Delhi elections, currently scheduled for February, be held earlier, in November, alongside Maharashtra’s elections.

“I will only return to the CM’s chair when people say I am honest. I want to take an ‘agnipariksha’ after my time in jail,” Kejriwal said. He added, “I will become chief minister and Manish Sisodia will be deputy CM only when the people declare us honest.”

Kejriwal alleged that the BJP has been attempting to portray him as corrupt but said, “They cannot provide good schools and free electricity to the people because they are corrupt. We are honest.”

Accusing the BJP of filing false cases against non-BJP Chief Ministers, he urged these leaders to run their governments from jail if arrested. “I didn’t resign after my arrest because I respect democracy, and the Constitution is supreme for me,” he said, further asserting that the AAP is the only party that can challenge BJP's “conspiracies.”

Reflecting on his resignation in 2014 after 49 days in office over the Jan Lokpal Bill, Kejriwal said, “I resigned then for my ideals. I do not have a lust for power.”

He added that the excise policy case might continue for some time and said he wanted the people of Delhi to decide if he is guilty or honest. He asked for votes only from those who believe in his honesty. “For me, the BJP is not important; people are important,” he said.

Kejriwal also spoke about AAP leaders Satyendar Jain and Amanatullah Khan, who remain in jail, expressing hope that they would be released soon. He thanked God, saying, “He was with us through difficulties.”

Speaking about his time in jail, Kejriwal referred to the letters written by freedom fighter Bhagat Singh while imprisoned. He said that he wrote only one letter to the lieutenant governor from Tihar and was issued a warning for it.

He also mentioned that while freedom fighters were allowed to meet their colleagues, his party colleague Sandeep Pathak was not allowed to meet him in jail.

(With inputs from PTI)