Goa Assembly election: Arvind Kejriwal promises 'first corruption-free, honest' govt in state

Panaji: Aam Aadmi Party’s national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday assured a “corruption-free and honest” government in Goa if the AAP is voted to power in the Assembly polls due next year. Kejriwal told reporters in Panaji that the guarantee was made based on the track record of the AAP’s Delhi government, where its own minister was sacked for seeking a bribe from a shopkeeper. Ministers or MLAs won’t be spared from punishment if they are found demanding a bribe, the Delhi chief minister said. “We will provide the first corruption-free and honest government in Goa,” he claimed. If the AAP is voted to power in Goa, its government will also stop petty level corruption by introducing doorstep delivery of services, Kejriwal said. “We have already introduced doorstep delivery of services in Delhi. All the government services would be available at your doorstep,” he said. In Delhi, government officers visit an applicant’s residence to collect the documents, and a similar system will be introduced in Goa, he said. “Right from your panchayat work to the assistance from the chief minister, everything will be at your doorstep, he said. The AAP leader also claimed that if his party comes to power in Goa, people will see huge changes within a month in the way of the government’s functioning. The government will also help the industrial houses to conduct their business in the state, he said. The AAP government would facilitate the re-entry of industries, which have left the coastal state, by providing them all the required assistance, Kejriwal said. On pre-poll alliance with the Trinamool Congress (TMC), which has jumped into the fray in Goa, he claimed the Mamata Banerjee-led party is “not even in the race”. There are 1,350 parties in the country, should I start mentioning everyone, he said, when asked about his silence on the TMC. Kejriwal said the TMC does not have even have a one percent vote share. “You cannot win the election merely on posters. You need to work and take your achievement to the people while asking for votes,” he said. The AAP had contested the 2017 Goa Assembly elections but did not win a single seat in the 40-member House. The TMC has announced that it will contest all the 40 seats in the forthcoming elections in the coastal state.