Reacting sharply to the ‘Revdi Par Charcha’ (freebies) campaign launched by Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva, on Friday, regretted that while the Central government’s welfare schemes have been implemented by the states ruled by the saffron party, the national capital remained an exception.

Sachdeva asked why Kejriwal, who claims to provide free electricity, does not extend the subsidy to everyone. Why electricity rates in Delhi are so high, with industrialists having to pay Rs 18 per unit while the government allegedly exploiting the city’s residents under the guise of surcharges?

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Taking a dig at the AAP chief, he said welfare schemes should be accessible to all but Kejriwal’s tone suggests he is distributing “charity”. He said the Delhi government has not implemented many Central government welfare schemes in the capital due to political rivalry.

The Delhi BJP chief said whether it is the Ayushman Bharat Scheme, Vishwakarma Scheme, Ujjwala Yojana, or the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, people across the country have benefitted from these initiatives. However, Delhi has been unfortunate as these schemes were not implemented here due to a corrupt government.

He said the AAP government failed to provide clean drinking water to the people as a result of which 21,000 people in Delhi have died in the past few years due to contaminated water as per government data.

Sachdeva called the Rs 73,000-crore scam in the Delhi Jal Board is a glaring example of Kejriwal’s misgovernance. He assured that once the saffron party comes to power in Delhi, it would reorganise the DJB and ensure tap water supply for every household.

The BJP leader criticised the AAP government for the alleged bungling in school infrastructure by engaging in corrupt practices in the construction of classrooms jeopardising the future of 1.5 lakh students who failed in 9th and 11th grades.

According to the BJP, several Delhi government schools do not offer science and commerce streams after the 10th grade.

The BJP leader questioned the free medical services claim of Kejriwal alleging that appointments for tests in Delhi government hospitals are delayed while expired and fake medicines are being distributed.

Sachdeva said the AAP talks of free bus services hiding the fact that there are hardly any state buses left in the city worth traveling. He claims that in the past 10 years, the government has not purchased a single new bus and as the state transport corporation workers went on strike the government remained silent.