BJP has killed democracy by manipulating elections, Punjab will halt its Vijay Rath: Kejriwal

New Delhi, May 5 (PTI) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday asserted that Punjab will halt the 'Vijay Rath' (victory chariot) of the BJP, which is celebrating a massive victory in the West Bengal election.

Kejriwal said that the BJP has "hijacked and killed" democracy by manipulating elections.

"What happened in West Bengal was not an election. We have been witnessing what has been happening there for months. The same was done in Bihar, Maharashtra, and even in my own New Delhi constituency.

"Today, democracy is under threat. In 2014, there was a wave for Narendra Modi, and they kept winning elections. In February 2015, they won only three seats in Delhi. If they come to power in Punjab, they will ravage the state," the former Delhi chief minister said.

Kejriwal alleged that even if a rival party wins an election, it matters little to the BJP, which deploys agencies like ED and CBI, leverages money power, indulges in horse trading of MLAs, resorts to breaking parties, topples governments, sends leaders to jail, and ensures their votes get deleted.

He asserted that the 2027 Punjab election would be "the last election" for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Once again, a wave is building. They are winning everywhere, in Assam, Bengal, Bihar, Maharashtra and Delhi … But in the upcoming Punjab election next February, this Ashwamedha horse (BJP) will be stopped, and after the Punjab elections, the Modi government will fall. The end of the Modi government will come through Punjab," he said.

The AAP supremo emphasised that there is a pro-incumbency sentiment for the Punjab government, with every village acknowledging the work done by the administration.

"It is very rare for people to praise a government. Usually, after four years, people say there is strong anti-incumbency. But in Punjab, you can go to any village or any locality, and today there is no anti-incumbency; instead, there is pro-incumbency," he said.

On the seven MPs who switched to the BJP, Kejriwal said that those seats belonged to Punjabis.

"BJP looted those seats from Punjab, and now we all have to work to stop them. Punjab has historically stopped foreign aggression, but this time the enemy is within. Punjabis have to stop them," he said.

"Whenever India was attacked, the attack came from the west, and Punjab stood as a shield, shedding its blood to stop invaders," he asserted.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, alongside Kejriwal, addressed Punjab MLAs gathered at Kapurthala House.

Earlier in the day, Mann met President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhawan and urged her to terminate the memberships of six Rajya Sabha MPs from the state who switched allegiances to the BJP.

Punjab BJP leaders have expressed confidence in replicating their West Bengal success in the Punjab Assembly Polls in 2027. PTI