New Delhi: Asserting that he would “not bow down” even if he is harassed in jail, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Friday he would be surrendering on June 2 and, in an emotional appeal, asked the people of the city to take care of his old and ailing parents after he goes behind bars.
“I will leave my house around 3 pm (on Sunday) to surrender. It is possible that this time they will torture me more, but I will not bow down,” he said. He assured the people of Delhi that all the facilities available to them will continue even in his absence.
“You take care of yourself. I worry a lot about you in jail. If you are happy, your Kejriwal will also be happy. I will not be among you, of course, but don't worry, all your work will continue… And after returning, I will also start giving Rs 1,000 every month to every mother and sister,” he said in a virtual press conference.
Hitting back, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said Kejriwal had a “disease of lying”. “Kejriwal has said that he has a serious disease. I agree with what he has said. He has a disease of lying.” The BJP leader said the AAP supremo had campaigned for the elections, but now that the time has come for him to go to jail he was reminding everyone of his diseases.
Making an appeal to Delhiites who stood by him in difficult times to look after his aged and ailing parents, the AAP chief said he had always fulfilled his duty as a son “of your family”. “Today I want to ask something from you for my family. My parents are very old, my mother is very ill. I will worry a lot about her in jail. Take care of my parents after I am gone, pray for them, pray to God. Prayers have great power. If you pray for my mother daily, she will definitely remain healthy,” he said.
Kejriwal said his wife Sunita was very strong and has supported him in every difficult phase of life. “When difficult times come, the whole family comes together, you all have supported me a lot in difficult times. It is because of your prayers that I am alive today and your blessings will protect me in the future too. In the end, I just want to say that if God wishes, your son will come back very soon,” he said.
“We are all fighting dictatorship together… If something happens to me while saving the country, if I even lose my life, do not be sad,” he said.
“I am proud that I am going to jail to save the country from dictatorship. They tried to break me in many ways, tried to bow me down and tried to silence me. But they did not succeed,” the CM said, adding that when he was in jail recently, he was “tortured” in many ways.
Talking about the unexplained weight loss during his incarceration, the AAP supremo said during his 50-day stay in jail, he lost 6 kg. “When I went to jail, my weight was 70 kg. Today it is 64 kg. Even after being released from jail, my weight is not increasing,” he said.
Kejriwal said the doctors are saying this can also be a sign of some major disease in his body. The ketone level in his urine also increased considerably and many tests need to be done, he reiterated.
The AAP supremo was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court till June 1 for the Lok Sabha campaign. After being released from Tihar Jail, he visited Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi and Maharashtra to campaign.
