While the BJP mocked Arvind Kejriwal in a poster with a ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’ twist, the AAP retaliated by “challenging” the saffron party to introduce a similar scheme in the 20 states ruled by it
As AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday launched the ‘Pujari Granthi Samman Yojana’, promising a monthly allowance of Rs 18,000 for temple priests and granthis of gurdwaras, a political war of words raged over the scheme with the BJP calling Arvind Kejriwal “chunavi Hindu”.
The BJP mocked Kejriwal in a post on social media platform ‘X’, showing him in a priest-like avatar similar to a character in Bollywood film ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also retaliated with a poster of its own “challenging” the BJP to introduce a similar scheme in the 20 states ruled by the party.
In one of its major poll promises, the AAP on Monday (December 30) announced that it will launch the scheme if it is re-elected in Delhi. Kejriwal launched the scheme earlier in the day, registering the priest of Marghat Wale Baba temple near Kashmere Gate ISBT, following which Chief Minister Atishi visited a gurdwara in Karol Bagh to conduct registrations.The former chief minister said this process will be followed at other temples and gurdwaras across the city by AAP workers. He alleged that the BJP tried its best, but no one can stop a devotee from meeting the god. He added that he will visit the Prachin Hanuman Mandir at Connaught Place to register the priests there. But, as the politics over the honorarium gathered momentum in Delhi, a group of priests staged a protest against him outside the temple for announcing the honorarium after a delay of 10 years.
In its poster mocking Arvind Kejriwal, the BJP called him a “chunavi Hindu” (Hindu for electoral purposes), saying “visiting temples was a mere illusion” for the AAP leader. The party said he had “ridiculed Sanatan Dharma” at every step of his political career and the Pujari Granthi Samman Yojana was simply an “electoral gimmick”. Delhi BJP leaders joined the chorus against the AAP and Kejriwal, with MP Bansuri Swaraj calling the scheme an “appeasement” move ahead of the assembly polls. In a press conference, she challenged the AAP chief to implement the schemes announced by him, including the ‘Mahila Samman Yojna’, saying there is no model code of conduct in place.
Bansuri said the AAP government was unable to pay Rs 18,000 to imams of mosques for months due to lack of funds and yet Kejriwal was trying to appease the priests and granthis just before the elections. She questioned why there was no honorarium for hem in the last 10 years. Addressing a press conference, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia dubbed the announcement of the monthly honorarium as yet another “false promise” by the AAP. He claimed that the AAP leader knows his “political life” is coming to an end. He further said until recently his government was opening liquor shops outside religious places. He noted that the AAP government has also promised a similar amount to imams, but has not paid them for 17 months. “There has been no bigger fraud and deceitful politician in India than him,” he alleged. Another BJP leader, Vijay Goel, lashed out at Kejriwal over his declaration of the scheme and told PTI that all these announcements are mere election promises. “Why is Arvind Kejriwal not contesting the elections on poor drinking water, pollution in Delhi, corruption, water, electricity problem and bad road conditions?” he asked.
Former Delhi MP Parvesh Verma said Kejriwal is remembering ishwar and waheguru due to the fear of loss. But he did not remember them for the last 10 years, only remembering maulvis of the mosque, and saw only one religion and one vote bank.
If nothing else, the pre-poll poster war between the two parties hit an all-time high. The AAP hit back at the BJP in an “open challenge”, daring it to roll out similar schemes in the 20 states where it held power. On X, Kejriwal said the BJP has been abusing him since he announced the scheme. “…My question to them is – will the country benefit from abusing me? You have governments in 20 states. You have been in power in Gujarat for 30 years. Why haven’t you respected the priests and granthis there till now? Come on, do it now? I have shown the way to everyone. Instead of abusing me, why don’t you implement it in your 20 states, then everyone will benefit? Why do you abuse me?” he wrote in Hindi.
Former deputy CM and senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia said he is confident that “God will surely listen to the prayers of the priests” to make Kejriwal the CM again. “…priests from different temples came and prayed to make Arvind Kejriwal the CM of Delhi again… I had a very pleasant experience…and I am confident that God will surely listen to the prayers of the priests. Just yesterday, Arvind Kejriwal announced that after our government is formed in Delhi, priests and granthis of Delhi will be given Rs 18,000 every month. I am hopeful that God’s blessings will be on us,” he added. Kejriwal launched a monthly honorarium of Rs 18,000 for Hindu temple priests and gurdwara granthis in Delhi. He, however, did not elaborate on the guidelines for registration and the eligibility criteria for the scheme.
There are no official numbers of registered temple priests and gurdwara granthis in Delhi. “Their numbers will be known after the registration process is complete,” he said when asked about the number of potential beneficiaries and stressed that there will be no lack of funds for it. The announcement evoked sharp reactions from the opposition BJP and Congress. While the BJP dubbed the announcement a “political stunt”, the Congress termed it a “trickery”. Kejriwal sought to outplay the BJP, saying the party should not try to hamper the scheme as it will be “sinful”. “Just like the BJP tried to stop the Mahila Samman Yojana by sending police but couldn’t, similarly they shouldn’t try to stop the ‘Pujari Granthi Samman’ scheme. The BJP will incur a great sin by doing this. This scheme is a tribute to their spiritual contribution to the society and their efforts to preserve our cultural heritage,” he said in a social media post. The AAP said several priests and granthis visited Kejriwal at his residence to bless him following the announcement. Meanwhile, several imams and muazzins of the Waqf Board-registered mosques protested near his residence, demanding their salaries allegedly pending for the last 17 months. The Delhi government pays monthly Rs 18,000 to imams and Rs 16,000 to muazzins of mosques registered with the Delhi Waqf Board. “Kejriwal is making desperate attempts to shine his tainted image and regain his lost ground by announcing various freebies to influence the voters with an eye on the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections,” alleged Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav.
