BackArvind Kejriwal apologizes, says not calling off rally was a ‘mistake’
Delhi chief minister says the debate should be shifted to the situation of farmers now
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New Delhi: Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Friday apologized for continuing a rally and making a speech after a farmer from Rajasthan committed suicide at the venue. Two days ago, a 41-year-old farmer from Dausa district in Rajasthan, Gajendra Singh, hanged himself from a tree at Jantar Mantar in central Delhi during the party’s rally.
“It was my mistake I made the speech. It did not strike me at the time. I apologize if I hurt anybody’s sentiments. What is happening after that is wrong. The police and district magistrate are doing their investigations. Whoever is at fault should be hanged. We have to think why farmers are committing suicide," Kejriwal said.
Kejriwal had continued with his address after the farmer was taken to hospital. Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia had also addressed the rally before him. Since the incident, the AAP has faced allegations made by opposition parties including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress of being insensitive for continuing the rally. “It was a painful situation. We were on the stage and the tree was at a distance. We could not see what was happening clearly. If anyone would have thought that he would do something like this, someone would have saved him," Kejriwal added. Saying that the discussion should be shifted to the situation of farmers, he said, “I admit I am guilty. Blame me, but can we talk about farmers now? Our mission is to stop farmers from committing suicide. We should shift the debate to that."
Opposition leaders felt an apology was not enough. “We only want to ask how many times Kejriwal is going to apologize? When he quit the 49-day government, he came back, apologized, and today, again, he is apologizing. So he needs to introspect. Tendering an apology won’t suffice," Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken said.
A group of members from the AAP led by Sanjay Singh on Friday visited Singh’s family in Dausa district. AAP leader Ashutosh, on a panel discussion on Aaj Tak television channel, which also had Singh’s daughter, said, “The politics that is happening over the issue is sad. The people of the country should understand they will get nothing from this type of politics."
On Thursday, the opposition initiated a discussion on farmer issues in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
Political analysts say the damage has already been done. “The issue is so sensitive that an apology, giving concession is fine but an important question that remains is how such an incident could happen in public?" asked A.K. Verma, a Kanpur-based political analyst.
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