Is Kejriwal anti-Dalit and anti-reservation, know the present and past
#News Bureau January 15,2025
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has touched the sore spot of AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal. Rahul said that why is Kejriwal silent on taking the reservation limit beyond 50 percent and caste census. After Rahul’s allegation, there was a need to investigate the fact whether Kejriwal is really anti-Dalit. AAP is in power in Delhi and Punjab. Kejriwal’s controversial attitude towards Dalits has come to the fore again and again in both the states. Kejriwal is getting defamed not only among the 17 percent Dalit voters in Delhi but also among the 32 percent Dalit population of Punjab due to his policies.
Although Kejriwal and AAP are now chanting Ambedkar-Ambedkar, the reality is something else. Watch a viral video in which Kejriwal is giving his opinion on reservation. He is saying that if a member of the family has got the benefit of reservation, then the rest of the family should not get the benefit of reservation. Kejriwal’s such views on reservation are not of any leader of any other political party at least.
Kejriwal’s views on reservation are actually more of silence, that is, if someone cannot support reservation, then his respect is saved by keeping quiet. But when history is dug out, the truth comes out. A similar face of Kejriwal was revealed in 2017. On the stage of AAP, the then party leader Kumar Vishwas had said that reservation should be abolished now, only then justice can be done to our youth. But Sanjay Singh from AAP immediately denied it saying that these are Kumar Vishwas’s own views. They are not AAP’s. But Kejriwal, as AAP convenor, did not feel the need to deny it. He remained silent.
Why did two Dalit leaders leave?
Two prominent Dalit leaders Rajendra Pal Gautam and Rajkumar Anand left Kejriwal’s side. But while leaving AAP, these people exposed Kejriwal’s anti-Dalit and anti-Muslim politics. Actually, Gautam converted to Buddhism while being a minister in the Kejriwal cabinet. Apart from BJP, Kejriwal was also upset with this conversion. While leaving the party, Gautam had said that Aam Aadmi Party is actually under the influence of BJP.
Gautam’s serious allegations: After leaving the party, Rajendra Pal Gautam alleged that Dalits and minorities were being discriminated against in the Aam Aadmi Party. Seemapuri MLA Gautam said that the AAP is not giving special representation to Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC) and minorities. Gautam joined AAP in November 2014. He then became a minister in the Kejriwal government and took charge of various departments including Social Welfare. Gautam had to resign from the post of Social Welfare Minister in October 2022 after a political controversy arose over his alleged remarks about Hindu deities. Gautam said that the party supports upper caste MLAs or ministers if any allegation is made against them but immediately abandons them even if the allegations against a Muslim or Dalit are false. In a way, Muslims and Dalits have been internally ‘blacklisted’ from the party and the change in the party’s behavior is sad.
Gautam said that the party supports upper caste MLAs or ministers if any allegation is leveled against them but immediately abandons the party even if the allegation against a Muslim or Dalit is false. In a way, Muslims and Dalits have been internally ‘blacklisted’ from the party and the change in the party’s behavior is sad.
ajendra Pal Gautam was not the first Dalit leader to leave the Aam Aadmi Party. Earlier, Raj Kumar Anand, who took his place in the Delhi cabinet, also left AAP later. But while leaving the party, Rajkumar Anand had also made the same allegation that AAP and Kejriwal were ignoring Dalit leaders and their issues.
Chhatar Singh, former chairman of the OBC Commission of the Delhi government, says that Kejriwal is actually anti-reservation. He said that Kejriwal is raising the issue of Jat reservation today but in 2013, on the initiative of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, the then central government included the Jats of Delhi in the national OBC list through a notification issued on 04.04.2013. When the government changed in 2014, the BJP government went to the Supreme Court and got the case of including Jats in the OBC list dismissed. Both AAP and BJP are anti-Jat.
What is the connection with Youth for Equality
Kejriwal’s connection with Youth for Equality (youth demanding equality) has also been reported. But Kejriwal never denied or confirmed it. This has been directly mentioned in a tweet by Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Saket Gokhale. In this tweet made in October 2020, Gokhale had written on X- Arvind Kejriwal was one of the first founders and patrons of a group called “Youth for Equality” whose sole aim is to remove caste-based reservation. Hope the Delhi CM has learnt by now and will clearly call the Hathras case a crime against Dalits.
In the March 2014 Indian Express report, this has also been mentioned quoting Congress leader and former MP Udit Raj. However, at that time Udit Raj himself was in BJP and had made allegations on behalf of BJP. Indian Express had put Udit Raj’s quote in that report. In which Udit Raj is saying- Alleging that Kejriwal had participated in a discussion organized by Youth for Equality Forum in JNU, Udit Raj said, “Everyone knows that Youth for Equality was started to oppose reservation. We want Kejriwal to clarify his stand on this issue.
Also know that Youth for Equality has also contested the student union elections in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). It has also challenged all reservations in the Supreme Court. It had also challenged Maratha reservation. It has also opposed the Supreme Court’s order of classification of sub-castes in castes. All the anti-reservation activities show that this organization is running an anti-reservation campaign in many ways. Many people associated with this have now become famous journalists of the country and are working in various famous media outlets.
Aatishi is also anti-reservation
Chief Minister Atishi is also surrounded by anti-reservation allegations. At present, her 2014 tweet is viral on social media, in which Atishi has said – those who have got the benefit of reservation should leave it for the next generation. People have also asked questions on social media whether caste also changes after getting reservation once. People have described Atishi, Kejriwal and AAP as anti-reservation on social media.
It is important to mention here that for the last two days, people have been bringing out old statements and tweets on social media to express their views on the past of Kejriwal and Atishi, but so far neither the party nor Kejriwal or Atishi have said anything in their defence. Although now even the Congress has officially called Kejriwal, Atishi and AAP anti-Dalit and anti-reservation, but despite this, the allegation of the Congress has not been refuted. It is obvious that Kejriwal and Atishi do not want to get embroiled in this issue, because evidence and facts are present.
t is important to mention here that for the last two days, people have been bringing out old statements and tweets on social media to express their views on the past of Kejriwal and Atishi, but so far neither the party nor Kejriwal or Atishi have said anything in their defence. Although now even the Congress has officially called Kejriwal, Atishi and AAP anti-Dalit and anti-reservation, but despite this, the allegation of the Congress has not been refuted. It is obvious that Kejriwal and Atishi do not want to get embroiled in this issue, because evidence and facts are present.
Assembly elections are currently being held in Delhi. If the Dalit issue gains momentum, AAP may face trouble. Because BJP is already going to take the services of Lok Janshakti Party (Paswan) chief and Union Minister Chirag Paswan. BSP has already announced to contest elections on all the seats in Delhi.
How Kejriwal cheated in Punjab
Well, in Delhi, Dalit voters are 17 percent, whereas in Punjab the Dalit population is 32 to 37 percent and they influence politics completely. Kejriwal took the party to new heights in Punjab but there were promises behind it. Before the 2017 assembly elections in Punjab, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal promised that if voted, a Scheduled Caste Deputy Chief Minister would be appointed in Punjab. AAP could not win the 2017 Punjab elections. But AAP won the 2022 elections and formed the government on its own. Due to Kejriwal’s promise, Congress made a Dalit CM (Charanjit Singh Channi) in Punjab but Congress lost. But despite forming the government, Kejriwal did not fulfill the promise in Punjab.
Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Pratap Singh Bajwa calls Kejriwal and his AAP “anti-Dalit”. He made his point by giving examples. Bajwa said that there was deliberate delay in approving applications under the centrally sponsored scholarship scheme for Scheduled Caste students. He said that the AAP government did not release funds for 2024-25. The state government has 18,243 applications pending. Why are funds being stopped for Dalits?
