While introducing your political party, you said if elected to power, you will have to overhaul the system in ten days. Is it practical?
Ten days are symbolic. But we would have to do that as soon as possible because the power is responsible for all the ills and you have to demolish the power structure. The only way is to enter it, demolish it in a very short span. If we stay there for longer, we will not realise when vested interests surround you. You have to do it as fast as possible. Decentralisation of power is very important and will have to be done soon enough. Rest all can follow.
Tell us about you your party’s cadre.
This is a party which has come out of a movement. The people who participate in this movement will be the natural cadre of the party. What is required is to identify the people, to see if they relate to the movement and to train them.
Kejriwal at a discussion in the office. Danish Raza/ Firstpost
Now when you have moved on from activism to politics, what changes you see in your role towards the society and nation at large?
This is a much bigger responsibility.
Not everyone was happy about your decision of taking a plunge into politics. Justice Santosh Hegde, Medha Patkar and Akhil Gogoi made their disappointment public. Did you reach out to them?
I am constant touch with all of them and I am very sure that soon, they should be also a part of this.
Exposing politicians and political parties is one thing. But you sound like a cynic when you go further and convey that all the institutions including legislature, judiciary and executive have become defunct.
It is the opposite. There was already cynicism in the country. People used to say “desh ka kuchh nahin ho sakta”. We have brought them to a stage where people are saying “desh toh ho sakta hai.” Therefore, we are taking people from cynicism to hope.
What are the three good things about India?
The people of this country are the biggest hope. These are first class people.
Your critics say that you are a man in a great hurry.
I completely agree. We are in a great hurry. That is because if we don’t do something immediately, the idea called India would not survive.
Their perception is that you abandon one movement for another. In 2002 you started with Parivartan. You moved on to the RTI Act and for 18 months before August agitation, you worked for Lokpal.
It is not that I am abandoning causes. The next movement actually encompasses the previous one. Parivartan dealt with extortionist bribery. We graduated to RTI which helped us giving information on and containing extortionist bribery. Lokpal was the next logical step after RTI because people were getting information but no action was taken. And from Lokpal, now it is complete Swaraj.
