NEW DELHI: “We changed the face of Delhi in 15 years. Give us another chance to serve you again,” said Sheila Dikshit, a three-time chief minister, while campaigning in Mukundpur block of Burari — the Poorvanchali stronghold of northeast Delhi.
“The history of Congress has been one of service to the country. For whatever brief periods non-Congress governments came to power, they tried to achieve their own selfish goals,” Dikshit told a gathering of some 400 people.
The former CM also rubbished the claim that Congress had not done anything in the last 70 years . “All these highways, aircraft and prosperity wouldn’t have been possible if Congress had done nothing. While I was growing up, a large number of commodities had to be imported, but now we are exporting things. In 15 years, the Congress government changed the face of Delhi. Even foreigners and people from other parts of the country recognised Delhi’s development,” she said.
The meeting venue, meanwhile, was symptomatic of the challenges being faced by Mukundpur residents — poor sanitation, lack of space for public utilities and massive traffic congestion — showing up the problems of unorganised urban development. “I have come to seek your blessings so that Congress can get another opportunity to serve the people of Delhi. All this mess that you see, I assure you, we will clean it up,” Dikshit said.
There were signs of age catching up, though: she needed the support of party workers to get up and even forgot the name of the Prime Minister once. “Narendra Modi”, those on the stage reminded her. Dikshit laughed it off and launched an attack against the PM: “PM Modiji says one thing, but does quite the opposite. Has anyone of you got the promised Rs 15 lakh in your account? He deliberately makes promises that he can’t keep. But now his bluff has been called.”
She added: “Don’t fall for fake promises; it will not only harm you, but also hurt the country.”
The public meeting was organised close to the giant Maharana Pratap statue in Mukundpur. Congress workers sought to portray Dikshit as “Vikas ki Devi”. Ambika Singh, stage coordinator, said: “When Madamji assumed power, residents here had no access to water and electricity. She is responsible for all the development here.” She said it was time for people to pay back the debt.
Dikshit questioned the track record of her opponent, Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari, even as she dismissed the challenge of AAP’s Dilip Pandey altogether. The large chunk of Muslim population (traditionally aligned with Congress) and poorvanchalis (which could mean advantage Tiwari) form key vote banks in North East Delhi.
However, the constituency is also AAP’s playground as Arvind Kejriwal’s NGO, Parivartan, has its origins in Sunder Nagri. AAP’s campaign has focused on unauthorised areas and JJ clusters where people have benefited from water, sewer and power infrastructure development.
“The history of Congress has been one of service to the country. For whatever brief periods non-Congress governments came to power, they tried to achieve their own selfish goals,” Dikshit told a gathering of some 400 people.
The former CM also rubbished the claim that Congress had not done anything in the last 70 years . “All these highways, aircraft and prosperity wouldn’t have been possible if Congress had done nothing. While I was growing up, a large number of commodities had to be imported, but now we are exporting things. In 15 years, the Congress government changed the face of Delhi. Even foreigners and people from other parts of the country recognised Delhi’s development,” she said.
The meeting venue, meanwhile, was symptomatic of the challenges being faced by Mukundpur residents — poor sanitation, lack of space for public utilities and massive traffic congestion — showing up the problems of unorganised urban development. “I have come to seek your blessings so that Congress can get another opportunity to serve the people of Delhi. All this mess that you see, I assure you, we will clean it up,” Dikshit said.
There were signs of age catching up, though: she needed the support of party workers to get up and even forgot the name of the Prime Minister once. “Narendra Modi”, those on the stage reminded her. Dikshit laughed it off and launched an attack against the PM: “PM Modiji says one thing, but does quite the opposite. Has anyone of you got the promised Rs 15 lakh in your account? He deliberately makes promises that he can’t keep. But now his bluff has been called.”
She added: “Don’t fall for fake promises; it will not only harm you, but also hurt the country.”
The public meeting was organised close to the giant Maharana Pratap statue in Mukundpur. Congress workers sought to portray Dikshit as “Vikas ki Devi”. Ambika Singh, stage coordinator, said: “When Madamji assumed power, residents here had no access to water and electricity. She is responsible for all the development here.” She said it was time for people to pay back the debt.
Dikshit questioned the track record of her opponent, Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari, even as she dismissed the challenge of AAP’s Dilip Pandey altogether. The large chunk of Muslim population (traditionally aligned with Congress) and poorvanchalis (which could mean advantage Tiwari) form key vote banks in North East Delhi.
However, the constituency is also AAP’s playground as Arvind Kejriwal’s NGO, Parivartan, has its origins in Sunder Nagri. AAP’s campaign has focused on unauthorised areas and JJ clusters where people have benefited from water, sewer and power infrastructure development.
#ElectionsWithTimes
more from times of india cities
Quick Links
Lok Sabha Election Schedule 2019Lok Sabha Election NewsDelhi Capitals teamMI team 2019Rajasthan Royals 2019RCB team 2019Maharashtra Lok Sabha ConstituenciesBJP Candidate ListBJP List 2019 TamilnaduShiv Sena List 2019AP BJP List 2019Mamata BanerjeeBJP List 2019 MaharashtraPriyanka GandhiBJP List 2019 KarnatakaAMMK Candidate List 2019BJP List 2019 WBLok Sabha Elections in Tamil NaduBSP List 2019 UPNews in TamilLok Sabha Poll 2019Satta Matka 2018PM ModiMahagathbandhanNagpur BJP Candidate ListChandrababu NaiduTamil Nadu ElectionsUrmila MatondkarNews in TeluguMadras High CourtTejashwi YadavArvind KejriwalTejasvi SuryaPawan KalyanArvind KejriwalYogi AdityanathJaya PradaSatta King 2019Srinagar encounter
Get the app