New Delhi, Sep 17 (PTI) Changing the face of the chief minister will not change the character of Aam Aadmi Party, the BJP said on Tuesday, insisting that the Arvind Kejriwal-led party is still answerable for 10 years of corruption under its rule in Delhi.
It also attacked Aam Aadmi Party's chief minister-designate Atishi, claiming her parents had signed a mercy petition submitted to the President for Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.
"'Chehara badalane se AAP ka charitra nahi badalega' (changing the face does not change AAP's character)... Considering Kejriwal's 10 years of corruption, whoever is the CM will have to tell people how they looted the people of Delhi," Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva said.
"They have indulged in corruption in every department and now the people will give them an answer for that corruption," he added.
BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh claimed that Atishi as new Delhi chief minister would be a "national security concern".
"It is alarming that AAP has chosen Atishi as chief minister, given that her parents sought to halt the execution of a terrorist responsible for an attack on the Indian Parliament," Chugh said in an apparent reference to Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.
Speaking in the same vein, Sachdeva alleged that Arvind Kejriwal has pushed Delhi "to anarchy after announcing Atishi Marlena's name".
"A mercy petition was submitted to the President for Afzal Guru and her parents signed it. Not just a corrupt government, but an anti-national government will now operate" in Delhi, he said.
Targeting Kejriwal, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonwalla said, "Earlier we had a chief minister operating from jail who then became a chief minister on bail. Now it is being said that a proxy chief minister, a lame duck, is being brought at the helm".
The AAP leaders have said that the Delhi chief minister's chair belongs to Arvind Kejriwal and it will remain so, he alleged.
"This means the face will change, not the character. From de-jure chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal will become a de-facto chief minister," Poonwalla said.
He claimed that the AAP's character will not change with Atishi replacing Kejriwal as Delhi's chief minister.
"It's because there is corruption in every department under Atishi. There is education scam, water scam, DJB (Delhi Jal Board) scam, 'Sheesh Mahal' scam and various other scams," the BJP leader alleged.
"Atishi was the (AAP's) in-charge in Goa where money made through liquor scam was used" in the state assembly elections, he claimed.
Atishi as a minister in the Kejriwal government held several portfolios, including education, Delhi Jal Board, Public Works Department and Finance.
Appointing someone as Delhi chief minister whose family sympathised with a convicted terrorist is a "significant misjudgment and a injustice to the people of Delhi," Chugh said.
"This decision raises serious questions about AAP's commitment to national security, " he added.
Chugh also targeted the AAP's governance record, accusing the party of indulging in corrupt practices and failing to safeguard the interests of Delhi's citizens.
He urged people to reflect on the "potential risks posed by such fully tainted leadership" of the AAP.
"This decision has implications not just for Delhi, but for the entire nation. The people of Delhi must reject leaders who compromise the security of the nation and the safety of its citizens." Chugh said.
Hitting back, AAP’s Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh alleged that the BJP is the "biggest anti-national party in India".
The BJP formed a government in Jammu and Kashmir with the PDP which called Afzal Guru a "martyr", he claimed
Kejriwal, who was released from jail on bail on Friday, announced on Sunday that he would resign from the post and would only return at the helm if people give him a certificate of honesty.
He also demanded that assembly polls be held in November. The Delhi Assembly's term ends on February 23 and the polls are expected to be held some time in early February.