I made mistake. I should have called off the rally: Kejriwal on farmer’s suicide at AAP rally

“I honestly believe that even the AAP volunteers didn't think that he would jump”

GN Staff | April 24, 2015


#AAP   #Arvind Kejriwal   #Gajendra Singh   #suicide   #farmer  

“I made a mistake. I should have called off the rally," said Arvind Kejriwal on Friday.

Speaking to media the Delhi chief minister and AAP leader said "I admit it was my mistake I shouldn't have spoken but I said I didn't feel like talking during my speech."

As conflicting versions and legal issues crop up over farmer Gajndra Singh's suicide at Aaam Aadmi Party inDelhi on Wednesday, Kejriwal said "I think I was wrong to speak on the stage when we heard of farmer's suicide attempt."

"I apologise if someone's sentiments have been hurt," he said.

"I am saying I am guilty, can we now start talking about the farmers?" Kejriwal countered when pressed on the matter.

"When we were on stage, because of the bushes surrounding the tree, what was going on wasn't clearly visible. Some AAP volunteers came to us and said that something was wrong.”

"We couldn't announce that there was something wrong because then, the people would run to the tree. It would have caused great chaos," Kejriwal said.

"I honestly believe that even the AAP volunteers didn't think that he (Gajendra Singh) would jump," said Kejriwal.

He said the person responsible for Gajendra Singh's death should be hanged.

Cong and BJP react

Meanwhile, Congress leader Shobha Oza said that the incident could have been avoided if Kejirwal had been sensitive enough. "If the CM was sensitive enough, I am confident that farmer could have been saved," she said.

On the other hand, BJP lashed out at the Delhi CM and said that his politics was based on 'allegations, accuses and blame games'.

"It is ironical that Arvind Kejriwal is apologising. His politics is based on allegations, accuses and blame games," said BJP's Nalin Kohli.

Another BJP leader GVL Narasimha Rao said, "I hope AAP leaders will realise the manner in which they politicised the issue...I think today, after having seen the public outcry and media reaction over the issue, Kejriwal sounded reasonable."

"I think the Delhi government will now stop getting into confrontation with the Delhi police," Rao added.

Comment should be much more responsible

Congress leader Sheila Dikshit said she did not want to comment on what Kejriwal had said but added that he shouldn't politicise the issue of Gajendra Singh's suicide.

On the issue of AAP workers allegedly instigating the farmer to commit suicide, Sheila Dikshit said, "If what you're saying is true, it is not right for a ruling party. You (Kejriwal) are running a government. At first, you used to keep holding dharnas. But politicising someone's death like this is not right."

"As a chief minister, his statement should be much more responsible and should meet with the challenges that come up due to a tragedy like this," said Dikshit.

 

Comments

 

Other News

MoEFCC and CAQM launch ‘The Breath of Change’

To tackle air pollution in Delhi-NCR through public participation and creative engagement, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) have jointly launched a strategic communication campaign titled The Breath of Change.

India well on way to becoming a global IP powerhouse

Intellectual Property (IP) has evolved into a critical component of innovation and global competitiveness in India’s economy. As businesses pivot toward intangible assets like data, algorithms and branding, IP protection is no longer a matter of formality—it is a strategic imperative. The last

War and Peace: The conundrum of conflict in West Asia

Israel and Palestine have been the harbinger of troubles for the last 80-odd years. It is an unending and persistent saga of conflict and attrition which has bloodied the political, societal and economic turf in West Asia for long. The scale of wars, which were more than skirmishes of the day, ranged from

Trump’s tariff ploy sparks resistance from Global South

In the history of BRICS, never has any joint statement issued after a leader-level summit contained any remarks—directly or indirectly, against the US. However, for the first time, during the 17th summit of BRICS in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, leaders voiced their concern about America’s impositi

How India can become a $30 tn economy by 2047: A blueprint

Viksit Bharat: India @2047  By Aditya Pittie Fingerprint Publishing This timely and meticulously

The saga of a language family that has shaped the world

Proto: How One Ancient Language Went Global By Laura Spinney Distributed in India by HarperCollins India, 352 pages, Rs 599

Visionary Talk: Amitabh Gupta, Pune Police Commissioner with Kailashnath Adhikari, MD, Governance Now





Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter