Congress will be contesting the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections solely on the development plank. The party is also hopeful that people of Delhi will appreciate the all-round progress of the Capital that has taken place in the last 15 years under the Sheila Dikshit regime and vote for the Congress to form Government in the State for the fourth consecutive term.
In an exclusive conversation with The Pioneer, AICC General Secretary and in-charge of Delhi affairs Shakeel Ahmed said development work carried out by the Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit during her three terms is evident, which will facilitate the Congress to retain power in Delhi.
“Behind closed doors, even her (Dikshit) political opponents would also admit the infrastructure development of the city in the last 15 years. Congress will solely contest on development issues in Delhi. So-called “anti-incumbency” is not an issue as there is a level of satisfaction among the people,” he said.
“Had anti-incumbency been an issue, it would have worked for BJP in 2003 or 2008,” he said. However, the Congress leader added that inflation is an obvious concern of the common man at present but it is an international phenomenon and interrelated with the price of petroleum products.
“Price of crude oil has soared by 80 per cent. Majority of crude oil is imported by us. The Indian Government does not decide its price. During NDA regime, cost of crude was $12-36 per barrel though it has reached $146 dollar per barrel at present,” Ahmed said.
On the issue of spiralling power bills in the Capital, he said electricity in the city is still cheaper than BJP-ruled States, including West Bengal. “Besides Maharashtra, the power tariff is higher in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. Cheaper power tariff is another achievement of Delhi
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit,”
he added. “BJP talks about corruption but the party lost power in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and also in Karnataka due to corruption, where BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi also campaigned,” Ahmed said, adding that “no-Modi” effect will work in Delhi too. However, Ahmed confessed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Capital may gnaw into the vote share of Congress.
“Arvind Kejriwal is Team B of BJP. It is quite evident with their move. If Kejriwal wants to maintain equal distance from Congress and BJP, why has he decided to contest against Sheila Dikshit onlyIJ He should fight against the Chief Ministerial candidate or senior leaders of the BJP as well,” he said.
When asked whether his appointment (being Poorvanchali and minority) before the Assembly election in Delhi was strategically decided, Ahmed said no election is contested in the name of General Secretary and in-charge of any State.
“State’s in-charge is present only for better coordination among leaders. Elections are fought with the face of national leadership. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are our leaders. In Delhi, we also have Sheila Dikshit, Kapil Sibal and Jai Prakash Agarwal,” he said.