PM assures no welfare scheme to be stopped if BJP forms govt in Delhi says AAP has no vision

    New Delhi, Jan 5 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday assured the people of Delhi that no welfare scheme will be discontinued if the BJP forms the government and made a strong appeal to them to get rid of the Arvind Kejriwal-led party, which he attacked again with "aapda" and "Sheesh Mahal" jibes.
    Addressing the BJP's first public rally in Rohini before the upcoming polls, Modi alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party is rattled at the prospect of defeat after he "exposed its misdeeds" and has been spreading fear that various schemes will be discontinued if the BJP comes to power.
    "I have come to assure the people of Delhi that no public welfare scheme will be discontinued but the dishonest people will be rooted out," he said and accused the AAP of wasting Delhi's 10 years.
    He said every season in the city has turned into a period of "emergency", with drinking water shortages in the summer, waterlogging during the monsoon and pollution during the winter.
    The BJP has been out of power in Delhi since 1998. It has been making all-out efforts to dethrone the AAP which has ruled the city since 2015. Assembly elections in Delhi are likely next month.
    "Only when this 'aapda (disaster)' is gotten rid of in Delhi, the double-engine of development can come in," Modi said, hitting out at the AAP.
     He said the AAP government was a "disaster" that had struck Delhi, and any more responsibility given to the "aapda" would mean punishment for the people of Delhi.
    The "aapda" government does not have any vision to develop the national capital, and that is why lotus (the BJP's poll symbol) is going to bloom in the city and the BJP would usher in change, the prime minister said.
    "We want to make Delhi such a world capital that reflects the vastness of India's heritage. It should be the centre of new global systems. This can happen only when the BJP government works both at the Centre and state (Delhi)," he told the 'Parivartan Rally'.
    Modi also accused the AAP government of spreading fear that a BJP government in Delhi would discontinue several welfare schemes launched by the AAP.
    The AAP government is currently providing free electricity, water, bus rides for women and pilgrimage for the elderly. The AAP also claims its government's work in the health and education sectors is exemplary, and has been touting the "Kejriwal governance model" as the one others should emulate.
     The prime minister asserted a new BJP government would implement with renewed vigour central schemes that, he claimed, have been stalled by the AAP government.
     "The schemes which have only been on paper over the last 10 years and in which aapda people looted public money, the BJP government will implement them honestly. Those from aapda will be driven out and honest people will be brought in," he said.
    Hours after Modi's accusations, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal held a press conference and said the BJP is seeking votes by abusing him.
    The prime minister said the Centre has been developing highways in Delhi, expanding the Metro network, starting the Namo Bharat Regional Rapid Transit System, and running big hospitals.
     "However, the moment you step out of a Metro station, you can see potholed roads, overflowing sewers. Some areas are in such a state that even auto and cab drivers refuse to go there due to long traffic jams," he said.
    "In the past 10 years, Delhi has witnessed a state government that is no less than an 'aapda (disaster)'! Delhiites have realised this. Only one voice is ringing in Delhi -- 'Aapda nahi sahenge, badal kar rahenge (will not tolerate disaster, will bring change)," Modi said.
     He pointed out that several BJP governments in states are running special schemes for women.
    If the BJP is voted to power in Delhi, he said, its government will ensure women find it easier to run their households, daughters and sisters are safe and get opportunities for good education and jobs, people's incomes and savings go up and their life becomes comfortable.
    For this, a BJP chief minister is needed, he said, hinting the party may promise some financial assistance to women before the polls.
    The ruling Aam Aadmi Party has already announced that if it returns to power, it will give Rs 2100 monthly aid to women.
    "I have full confidence that the people of Delhi will rein in the corrupt and anti-development aapda and give an opportunity to the BJP to make the city a modern, 21st-century capital," Modi said.
    The PM told the rally he had come to Rohini to make a special request to the people of Delhi to give the BJP an opportunity for their own and the city's bright future. Only the BJP can develop Delhi, he said.
    The prime minister said when the people of Delhi were grappling with COVID-19, struggling to find medical oxygen and medicines, the entire focus of the "aapda people" was on building their own "Sheesh Mahal (palaces)", a reference to the BJP's allegations of corruption in renovating the chief minister's residence when Kejriwal in office.
    "They made a huge budget for the 'Sheesh Mahal'. This is their truth... They do not care about the people of Delhi. That is why every Delhiite today is saying... 'we will not tolerate aapda, we will bring change'," he said.
    He also accused the AAP government of wasting a decade fighting with the Centre.
    "We are in the 21st century and 25 years have passed. Two or three generations have entered their youth. The next 25 years are very important for Delhi. The next 25 years will see India emerge as a developed nation. We all will be stakeholders in this journey," Modi said.
    The national capital should be a part of this glorious journey, he added.
    "In Delhi, people blessed the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections and now, in the assembly polls, they are set to bless the BJP. This is a golden opportunity to win the heart of Delhi and free it of disaster ('aapda')," he said.
    Earlier in the day, Modi inaugurated several projects in the city worth Rs 12,200 crore.
    He inaugurated a 13-km section of the Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor from Sahibabad in Ghaziabad to New Ashok Nagar here. PTI VIT SKU BUN TIR RT TIR
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(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)