"The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) says that Arvind Kejriwal is in jail and that he should resign (as the chief minister of Delhi). Should he resign? Your Kejriwal is a lion. They won't be able to keep him in jail for long. He is in the hearts of crores of Indians," said Sunita Kejriwal, the wife of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, as she took the stage at the INDIA bloc's 'Mega Rally' at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan on Sunday, 31 March.
By addressing thousands of Opposition party workers and supporters, this was Sunita Kejriwal's first speech at a political event. "She has stood by Arvind Kejriwal all these years like a rock," said party leader Saurabh Bharadwaj as he introduced her ahead of her address.
Calm and composed, Sunita walked to the dias amid huge uproar and cheer by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) cadre.
She addressed the gathering while representing not just the imprisoned chief minister of Delhi but also Kalpana Soren, wife of former Jharkhand chief minister and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader Hemant Soren; Poonam Jain, wife of imprisoned AAP leader Satyendar Jain; and Anita Singh, wife of imprisoned AAP leader Sanjay Singh – all of whom were present on stage.
"Seema Sisodia ji, wife of Manish Sisodia ji could not attend due to health reasons but has sent her blessings," Bharadwaj said. With repeated mention of their names at the rally, AAP made sure the presence of the spouses of the jailed Opposition leaders did not go unnoticed.
'Should Kejriwal Resign?': Sunita Woos Party Cadre
Most top party leaders who attended the event made sure to greet both Sunita and Kalpana, who were both strategically seated next to former Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Before reading out a letter by Arvind Kejriwal from prison, Sunita addressed the gathering directly to ask: "Prime Minister Narendra Modi put my husband in jail, did he do the right thing? Do you believe that Kejriwal Ji is a true patriot? Do you believe he is an honest person?"
The cadre promptly replied to every question.
"Sometimes I feel that he was a freedom fighter who was martyred during the freedom struggle in his previous life. Even in this life, he has probably been sent to fight for Mother India,” Sunita said.
She then read out Arvind Kejriwal's message: "I won't talk about winning or losing the elections that are due. I invite all 140 crore people to build a greater India. God has given us everything. Yet, we are falling short. In prison, I have plenty of time to think. I think for Mother India and she is sad, she is in pain, she is crying out in agony."
Sunita read out the six promises by Kejriwal, on 'behalf of' INDIA bloc for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections:
24-hour electricity supply
Free electricity for the poor
A school in every village and mohalla at par with private schools
A mohalla clinic in every village
MSP for farmers as per the Swaminathan report
Full statehood for Delhi
Kejriwal, in his letter, further said that he is in good health in prison and has the blessings of his supporters.
'Speaking on Behalf of Tribals...': Kalpana Soren
Kalpana also addressed the rally on behalf of JMM chief Hemant Soren, and in the presence of current Jharkhand CM Champai Soren.
She said that she was addressing the gathering on behalf of half the population of India and 9 percent of the tribals of the country.
Accusing the BJP of destroying the values laid down by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in the Constitution, she said: "Hemant Soren is in jail for the past two months since 31 January. Kejriwal has been in jail for the past ten days. The allegations against them have not been proven. The people of the country are the most powerful and should properly use their power to vote in the elections and overthrow the dictatorial powers that are."
"Unemployment is at its peak. Inflation is at its peak. The fire of hatred is being spread in the country. There is a long story of sacrifice and struggle of the tribals. The history of tribals is a glorious history of centuries of revenge, struggle, scorched by fire and written in blood. We are proud of the great tribal men and brave women. Jharkhand will not bow down, INDIA will not stop," she added.
A day before the rally on Sunday, both Sunita and Kalpana had met in Delhi to "share their grief."
"What happened in Jharkhand two months ago, the same is happening in Delhi. CM Arvind Kejriwal has also been sent to jail just like my husband Hemant Soren was. I met Sunita ma'am and we decided that we would fight against this together," she had told the media on Saturday.
Kalpana had also met Sonia Gandhi on Saturday.
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