Delhi to decide if I am their son or terrorist: Arvind Kejriwal
New Delhi : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday slammed BJP for tagging him as a 'terrorist' in an outrageous verbal assault by Lok Sabha MP Parvesh Verma at an election rally in West Delhi last week.
In an emotional press conference, Arvind Kejriwal mentioned his intentions and also asked people of Delhi to make a decision.
"How have I become a terrorist? I've arranged for medicines... did so much for the needy. I've never thought of myself or my family... am ready to give my life for the nation.
"I am a diabetes patient. I take insulin four times a day. Doctors said no to my joining politics... they said I would not live," the Chief Minister said, also recounting his history of anti-corruption activism.
"If I wanted to... I could have gone abroad... so many of my friends and colleagues did. I gave up my job... does a terrorist do all this?' Mr Kejriwal, who graduated from the prestigious IIT-Kharagpur, asked, adding, "I leave this up to Delhi to decide... am I their son, their brother or a terrorist".
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal has written a letter to Delhi's electoral official, who is yet to forward the complaint to the Election Commission of India. He demanded that an FIR must be filed against Verma, who is already facing an enquiry by the Election Commission for claiming Shaheen Bagh's anti-citizenship law protesters "will rape your sisters, daughters".
He had made this shocking statement on January 25 while campaigning for Kailash Santhla in Madipur constituency.
In a video of the incident Mr Verma can be seen warning voters "if Kejriwal returns, Shaheen-Bagh type of people will take over streets" and that this "has happened in Kashmir with Kashmiri Pandits"; a reference to the Pandits' mass exodus from Kashmir after a spate of terrorist attacks in the 1990s.
"I have worked hard for five years, day and night, for Delhi. I gave up everything for the people of Delhi. After entering politics I faced many challenges so that I can help people improve their lives... and, in return, the BJP is calling me a terrorist. I am very sad," Kejriwal tweeted on Wednesday.
