New Delhi, Dec. 14 -- Welcoming every genuine effort aimed at strengthening democracy and public awareness, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)'s senior leader and Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj on Saturday drew a sharp contrast between intent and action, questioning the Congress party's credibility on the issue of vote-chori (vote theft).
The AAP Delhi Unit Chief pointed out that while Congress is now holding rallies in Delhi and speaking of electoral manipulation, it remained conspicuously silent a year ago when Arvind Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh and other AAP leaders were repeatedly presenting evidence of vote-chori in the national capital, raising serious doubts about whether the narrative is meant for safeguarding democracy or merely for partisan convenience.
Speaking on the matter during a media interaction on Sunday, AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj said, "From our side, we extend our best wishes to anyone who wants to carry out public awareness initiatives and strengthen democracy in the country. Such efforts deserve appreciation." However, he underlined that the narrative being built by the Congress today stands in sharp contrast to its past conduct in Delhi.
Pointing to the developments over the last year, the AAP Delhi Unit Chief said, "The same Delhi where Congress is now beginning a narrative of 'vote-chori' and holding a massive rally is the Delhi where, one year ago, vote-chori was happening openly. At that time, Arvind Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh and all our leaders were repeatedly presenting evidence of vot-chori, but Congress maintained complete silence. Even after one full year, Congress has remained silent on this issue."
Raising a direct political question, Saurabh Bharadwaj said, "When Rahul Gandhi stands at Jantar Mantar or Ramlila Maidan, will he be standing in the very Assembly constituency where Arvind Kejriwal was defeated by deleting votes and creating fake votes. That is the same Delhi whose Chief Minister was defeated through such means." He asked whether the Congress leader would speak on the issue of vote-chori in Delhi or deliberately avoid it.
Saurabh Bharadwaj asserted that the answer to this question would expose the true intent behind the Congress narrative. "If Rahul Gandhi avoids speaking on vote-chori in Delhi, then it will be clear that this entire narrative of vote-chori is only for themselves and their party, not for the country. In that case, the nation has no interest in such a selective narrative," he said.
He further added that consistency is essential for anyone claiming to speak for democracy. "If you speak on this issue honestly and openly, then you will be recognised as the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) and a responsible leader" Saurabh Bharadwaj said.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.