Kejriwal to be on two-day Gujarat visit from Sunday; to hold town hall meet on ‘free electricity’

PTI, Jul 2, 2022, 2:49 PM IST

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal will be on a two-day visit to Gujarat from Sunday, during which he will hold a town hall meeting on ”free electricity” and also administer oath to the newly-appointed party office-bearers, a party leader said here.

During his two-day stay in Ahmedabad, the Delhi Chief Minister will also hold meetings with senior leaders of the AAP and interact with party members, he said on Saturday. The Kejriwal-led party is gearing up to contest elections to the 182-member Assembly in BJP-ruled Gujarat to be held by the end of this year. ”Kejriwal will reach Ahmedabad airport at 3 pm on Sunday. He will administer oath to 7,500 newly-appointed office bearers at a function at 4 pm. They will take pledge to work whole-heartedly for the party and encourage workers for the upcoming Assembly election,” AAP’s national joint secretary Isudan Gadhvi told reporters here.

These office-bearers were appointed after the AAP dissolved its state organisation structure early last month, he said. ”For the people suffering due to inflation, our party has launched a ‘Muft Bijli’ campaign. If people in Delhi and Punjab can get free electricity, then why not those in Gujarat?” he asked.

On Monday, Kejriwal will hold a town hall on ”free electricity,” nearly two weeks after the party launched a state-wide stir demanding free electricity for domestic consumers from the BJP government, he said.

Discussions will also be held on the party’s ”guarantee card,” or election manifesto for Gujarat Assembly polls are scheduled in December, Gadhvi added. The AAP functionary accused the ruling party of misleading people by saying that the citizens of Gujarat do not need free electricity as he referred to a statement made by BJP’s state unit president C R Paatil. ”I would like to appeal to those leaders who do not need free electricity to put up a board outside their house declaring the same, so that more poor people can get free electricity,” he said. AAP leaders in Gujarat believe that the party’s ”free electricity” campaign will play a key role in the Assembly polls as they said that lakhs of people have supported it across the state.

The party leaders and workers organised padyatras, mashal and bicycle yatras in different parts of the state and sought from the people their support for the campaign. The party has promised free electricity to the people when voted to power.