He appealed to the people to give the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) a 2015 Delhi assembly election-like mandate in the civic polls too, so that rates of electricity and water are not increased.
“A senior Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader told me that if the Congress or BJP comes to power in municipal corporations, then the power and water departments of the Delhi government will be transferred to the corporations as was before 1998.
“This is being done to increase the rates of electricity and water in Delhi,” he claimed while addressing a public meeting in Burari , north Delhi.
Seeking a huge mandate so that “corruption in municipal corporations could be abolished and Delhi could be cleaned”, Kejriwal said: “If AAP comes to power in municipal corporations, it will not let the electricity and water rates increase even if both the departments are transferred to the civic bodies.
“If AAP is in power at the MCD as well, then both the Delhi government and the civic bodies will work together to make Delhi clean and developed,” Kejriwal claimed.
Elections for 272 municipal wards in Delhi will be conducted on April 23 and the results will be declared on April 26.
Listing the achievements of the AAP government, Kejriwal said his government had reduced electricity rates and provided free water to every household as promised.
“We did whatever we promised. We will also abolish residential house tax if we come to power in municipal corporations. We will turn the civic bodies from loss-making and corrupt organisations to profit-making and corruption-free organisations,” he said to a huge applause.
Kejriwal said the municipal corporations were one of the most corrupt departments and councilors who commute on scooters at the beginning of their term were buying big houses and expensive cars by the end of their tenure.
“The BJP-ruled MCDs turned the city into a garbage dump. We will eradicate corruption from the civic bodies and within a month, we will make Delhi a clean and tidy city, if we are voted to power,” Kejriwal promised.
Citing other achievements of his government, Kejriwal said that the primary healthcare was strengthened by constructing Mohalla clinics in the city and the standard of education was also improved at government schools.
“We did a lot in the health and education sectors. We made all kinds of tests free at government and most private hospitals. We raised minimum wages for the labourers in Delhi and also raised the amount of pensions for various segments,” he pointed out.