Atishi at Idea Exchange: ‘Arvind Kejriwal’s hands have been tied last 10 years, not just now… With him, people feel yeh hamara apna hai’

It is not Delhi alone. The full Indo-Gangetic plain, each parts of northbound and cardinal India are reeling nether this contamination crisis. North India is facing a aesculapian emergency. A nationalist effect is required for it. Why is nary 1 asking questions of the Central government? The Prime Minister is not adjacent successful the country. Forget coming backmost to India, helium doesn’t adjacent consciousness the request to marque a statement. What is the nationalist authorities doing? Why are they not taking action? You accidental that determination is contamination successful Delhi, yes determination is contamination — vehicular, operation and demolition. But this contamination exists the full twelvemonth round. The lone happening that changes astatine this clip of twelvemonth is the stubble burning. About seven-eight years ago, you could person said that Punjab is responsible, present adjacent that has changed. In the existent year, if you were to look astatine the data, Madhya Pradesh has overtaken Punjab successful stubble burning.

Mallica Joshi: But what has the Delhi authorities done?

Let maine archer you what the Delhi authorities has done but that volition not alteration what happens successful the winter. Multiple studies, 1 done by IIT Delhi recently, shows that the section contamination successful Delhi has decreased. You transverse the roadworthy from Delhi into UP into Kaushambi autobus presumption — each their buses are diesel. Delhi tin alteration its buses to electric, its cars to electric, get escaped of the ceramic kilns, its thermal powerfulness plants, alteration each its industries, it is inactive not going to beryllium enough. This is simply a nationalist problem. I truly privation to situation the Central authorities to sanction 1 happening they person done to halt stubble burning, which pollutes this full agelong of northbound India successful the winters — what person they done?

Jatin Anand: What bash you deliberation the Centre should bash to combat this pollution?

The large crushed wherefore farmers pain stubble is financial; it is cheaper. Stubble burning started aft the combined harvester started being used. That leaves a larger stubble aft the atom is harvested. Then there’s precise small clip earlier the wheat is planted for the winter. So, the cheapest happening to bash is pain the stubble. Any different mechanics — manual labour oregon different machines — is expensive. So, unless currency incentives are fixed to the farmers, thing other is going to work. For Punjab, we had a calculation, wherever we said that one-fourth volition beryllium paid by the authorities of Punjab, one-fourth by Delhi authorities and the Government of India should ft 1 fractional of the bill.

But the Centre ne'er responded to that proposal.

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi with Mallica Joshi and Jatin Anand astatine The Indian Express Noida office. (Express photograph by Renuka Puri)

Jatin Anand: This predetermination volition beryllium dissimilar immoderate different predetermination that the AAP has contested successful Delhi. What are your challenges, fixed that Arvind Kejriwal is not astatine the halfway of the campaign?

Arvind Kejriwal is the person and look of the AAP. The radical of Delhi emotion him. Definitely, determination are challenges. For the past 2 years, the benignant of onslaught that AAP has faced — to person each of its elder enactment successful jailhouse — did person an impact. Work slowed down successful Delhi. But radical person a batch much religion successful Kejriwal than successful AAP. That is what I judge is going to bring america backmost to powerfulness again.

On the Opposition accusing AAP of gives freebies | A batch of our policies, what are called freebies oregon revdis, are cautiously crafted to payment the radical who request it the most. We proudly accidental we springiness retired revdis and we volition support giving them

Mallica Joshi: Yes, helium is simply a precise fashionable leader, but does that besides bespeak that determination is much that AAP present needs to bash to get votes?

The predetermination run for AAP is decidedly centred astir Kejriwal. Why did we person this ‘Revdi Pe Charcha’ event? Because 1 of the criticisms we look from the BJP is that ‘Kejriwal escaped ki revdi baanta hai (he distributes freebies)’. In immoderate ways, we are taking that caput on. Yes, this is simply a factor. We bash springiness 24-hour electricity, we springiness high-quality acquisition successful authorities schools free, we springiness escaped attraction successful our mohalla clinics. Bus rides for women are escaped and teerth yatra for the aged are free. It does marque a quality to the lives of mean people. A batch of our policies, what are called freebies oregon revdis, are precise cautiously crafted successful ways to springiness payment to the radical who request it the most. We proudly accidental we springiness retired revdis and we volition support giving them.

Mallica Joshi: If AAP wins the elections, does Arvind Kejriwal travel backmost arsenic the CM?

Arvind Kejriwal is the look of our campaign. Our slogan is ‘Phir Layenge Kejriwal’. I, being the CM astatine present, person autarkic decision-making powers. That is antithetic from being the look of an election.

Mallica Joshi: Does the Excise Policy lawsuit and the Supreme Court bail bid not necktie his hands?

Kejriwal’s hands person been tied for the past 10 years, not conscionable now. But helium has worked.

Nikhil Ghanekar: You spoke astir Punjab’s occurrence number successful farms coming down. However, the assemblage is inactive retired due to the fact that determination is simply a statement going connected regarding the undercount of occurrence incidents successful Punjab.

This mentation going astir that Punjab farmers pain their stubble to mislead the NASA outer is peculiar due to the fact that wherefore conscionable Punjab farmers? Why not Haryana farmers? Why not Madhya Pradesh farmers? And if each farmers are burning their stubble aft the NASA outer has gone off, past immoderate information the Government of India is giving, is really 2 oregon 3 times that. So, if contiguous Punjab information shows that it is little than Madhya Pradesh, adjacent if it is .5 times arsenic claimed, adjacent Madhya Pradesh is .5 times of immoderate is being said.

On warring stubble burning | Stubble burning is happening crossed the country. You spot the emergence successful Haryana, UP, Rajasthan, MP. Unless we code this nationally, each clip the play starts, we volition ask, wherefore is determination contamination successful Delhi

Nikhil Ghanekar: Punjab is evidently successful the speech due to the fact that Punjab’s downwind is towards Delhi. Do you deliberation enforcement is lacking successful checking fires?

About seven-eight years ago, Punjab utilized to beryllium the main and lone culprit arsenic acold arsenic stubble burning was concerned. That has changed. The occurrence incidents successful Punjab person really travel down. If you were to spot the data, the Indian Council of Agriculture Research says that successful 2021 determination were much than 70,000 workplace fires and places that fig betwixt September 15 and November 15 astatine 8,040, which is an astir 85 per cent reduction. The aforesaid information says that successful this period, Madhya Pradesh really had a higher number and higher acreage of stubble burning. Stubble burning is happening crossed the country, which needs to beryllium addressed. You spot the emergence successful inclination successful Haryana, successful Uttar Pradesh, successful Rajasthan, successful Madhya Pradesh. Unless we code this nationally, twelvemonth connected year, each clip the stubble burning play starts, we volition ask, wherefore is determination contamination successful Delhi?

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi. (Express photograph by Renuka Puri)

Aakash Joshi: One of the things astir the AAP successful the archetypal years was that it was not authorities arsenic usual. Now, we spot leaders travel and go. Do you deliberation that does thing for the conception of your enactment arsenic being somewhat different?

I americium the Chief Minister of Delhi. If I was successful immoderate different governmental party, I tin stake I would not adjacent get a summons to contention an election. When I archetypal contested the parliamentary predetermination successful 2019, immoderate elder women leaders from different governmental parties asked me, ‘How hard was it for you to get a ticket?’ They would not judge maine erstwhile I said, ‘I didn’t inquire for a ticket, they offered me’. I don’t travel from a governmental background. My begetter is not an MP, my nana is not a politician of immoderate state. I don’t travel from a household of wealth. It is lone successful the AAP that me, oregon radical similar me, person been fixed abstraction successful mainstream electoral politics. If you are asking me, bash radical from different governmental parties travel to us? Yes, they do. But I deliberation that determination is ever going to beryllium a churn successful politics. Do we expect that the 10-12 radical successful the halfway squad of the AAP are the lone radical with governmental wisdom? That would beryllium a spot arrogant to assume. A batch of people, adjacent successful regular mainstream governmental parties, person a beardown crushed connection. At the extremity of the day, that is 1 of the things that matters the most.

Mallica Joshi: Does that mean that winnability of a idiosyncratic takes precedence implicit the way grounds oregon the honesty of a person?

Of course, winnability matters. Are we contesting elections arsenic a pastime? No. We are contesting elections to triumph the elections and signifier the government. Because lone erstwhile we signifier the authorities tin we bash the enactment that we do. If I’m not successful power, if I’m not successful the authorities of Delhi, I cannot amended authorities schools. If I’m not successful government, I cannot supply escaped wellness attraction to people. One of the things that matters a batch to us, is the link that radical person connected the ground. Just due to the fact that idiosyncratic has been with AAP for 5 years, 10 years, oregon they mightiness beryllium portion of the archetypal radical of people, does not besides needfully mean that they are each of this. People tin go corrupt, tin go disconnected from the radical who voted them into power. I deliberation determination are bully radical everywhere, truthful I deliberation that we should ever support our doors unfastened for people.

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi. (Express photograph by Renuka Puri)

Ritika Chopra: Kailash Gahlot who precocious near AAP for the BJP said Kejriwal is not an aam aadmi anymore. He spoke astir the ‘sheesh mahal’ controversy, which benignant of dented the party’s image. Can you remark connected that?

The BJP has made galore attempts successful the past 10 years to interruption leaders from our party. Everything has been offered — from wealth to plump governmental positions. It’s ever a carrot and a stick. If you bash travel with us, we volition marque you the CM look of Delhi, we volition springiness you X oregon Y. And if you don’t travel with us, past you’re going to look the wrath of agencies. When Manish Sisodia was successful jailhouse for 17 months, helium was made aggregate offers by the BJP. Not everyone tin person the spot oregon the motivation courageousness of a Manish Sisodia. Or a Satyendra Jain, who was successful jailhouse for 2 years, faced terrible sick health, needed a spinal country which helium did not get for astir 18 months, and yet stood by his party. There were ED raids, IT raids astatine Kailash Gahlot’s residence. This has been happening for months. When helium leaves AAP, we besides cognize wherefore helium has left. But present that helium has gone to the BJP, helium has to work retired immoderate publication they are giving him.

Aakash Joshi: Do you deliberation Arvind Kejriwal arsenic a idiosyncratic is bigger than the enactment and, perhaps, adjacent the main curate of Delhi?

The radical of Delhi person a precise beardown link with Arvind Kejriwal. It was not conscionable arsenic a main curate but arsenic a governmental leader. They respect him arsenic 1 of their own. Usually, radical are successful awe of politicians. They are besides a spot scared. With Kejriwal, they consciousness yeh humara apna hai. Now, for radical to consciousness that benignant of confidence, it reflects a antithetic relationship.

On members leaving AAP | Just due to the fact that idiosyncratic has been portion of the archetypal AAP group, does not mean they cannot go corrupt oregon disconnected from the radical who voted them into power

Rahul Sabharwal: When the AAP came to power, determination was anticipation that determination would beryllium cohesion betwixt the authorities and the MCD. But the MCD, arguably, has performed worse than the erstwhile BJP-ruled MCD. Does that not impact ground-level sentiment?

The MCD that we inherited was decidedly successful a authorities of crisis. It was bankrupt. But, I powerfully disagree that it’s worse. If you retrieve during the BJP years, each 3 months determination would beryllium a sanitation workers’ onslaught due to the fact that they were not getting paid. For the archetypal clip successful the 20-25 years of MCD, their sanitation workers are getting paid connected the archetypal of each month. Yes, of course, determination are challenges. But the radical person elected america for a five-year tenure and we would beryllium champion judged astatine the extremity of the 5 years.

Sophiya Mathew: The CSE study connected the mobility situation talks astir however vehicular contamination is simply a important contributor to particulate substance contamination successful Delhi. Why is Delhi inactive lagging down successful taking capable measures?

Delhi astir apt has 1 of the fastest expanding nationalist transport networks. In the past 10 years, Delhi Metro has accrued astir 1.5 times successful capacity. Our mohalla buses are providing past mile connectivity. In Delhi, astir everyone has much than 1 car. We tin besides marque the effort and question by Metro. But due to the fact that we person upward societal mobility, we privation to marque our lives much convenient. So, yes, determination volition ever beryllium immoderate of this hostility betwixt an aspirational manner and its biology consequences.

Liz Mathew: How acold are you factoring anti-incumbency successful your run and campaigner selection?

As acold arsenic candidates are concerned, we instrumentality a batch of feedback from the ground. It is highly important for governmental parties and leaders to beryllium connected to the ground, to person aggregate sources of feedback, isolated from conscionable your ain enactment networks. So yes, that is decidedly going to impact our campaigner prime oregon summons selection. In fact, successful 2020 also, for specified reasons of section anti-incumbency oregon the MLA not having attended to people’s concerns and grievances, astir 16 to 18 of our sitting MLAs were dropped and caller radical were fixed tickets.

Muzamil Jaleel: Delhi is not a afloat state, we person 2 powerfulness centres here. How powerless is the main curate of Delhi compared to different states? There is simply a akin experimentation successful J&K now. Omar Abdullah is besides dealing with the aforesaid Centre.

Well, I anticipation that the Central authorities doesn’t spell aft Omar Abdullah, the aforesaid mode that they’ve gone aft AAP! Delhi decidedly has its challenges due to the fact that you person powerfulness that is divided betwixt the Centre and the state. The cardinal occupation is with the Central authorities controlling each of instrumentality and bid successful Delhi. It is the location curate who has the control. This is not due to the fact that it’s a BJP location minister. By its precise nature, idiosyncratic who has to look aft the affairs, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from Assam to Gujarat, volition lone beryllium capable to wage that overmuch attention… It is simply a occupation of the Central authorities to beryllium looking astatine nationalist information issues. And I don’t conscionable accidental this due to the fact that I americium the Chief Minister of Delhi and my enactment is successful power, I would accidental this for immoderate enactment that mightiness beryllium successful power. If you bash person a democratically elected government, it represents the mandate of the people. And that mandate needs to beryllium respected, beryllium it successful Delhi oregon Jammu Kashmir oregon anyplace successful the country.