Kejriwal Was Consumed By Money, Power, Says Anna Hazare On AAP’s Delhi Polls Debacle

New Delhi: Veteran social activist and anti-graft crusader, Anna Hazare, criticized former chief minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal and blamed the latter of being consumed by ‘money and power.’ His response comes as Kejriwal’s party faces a defeat in the Delhi Assembly elections. The BJP, after 27 years in the opposition, is poised to take control of Delhi with a two-third majority. Kejriwal has been defeated himself in his New Delhi seat by the BJP’s Parvesh Verma.

Hazare, the face of the 2011 anti-corruption movement that gave prominence to Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party, said he had warned the Delhi leader but his warnings went unheeded. The warnings, according to Hazare, were particularly concerning the now-scrapped excise policy. “I have always said that a candidate’s conduct and thoughts should be pure, life should be without blame, and sacrifice should be there. These qualities let voters have faith in him,” Hazare said, referring to the corruption charges and controversies surrounding the AAP and its top leaders.

“They got tangled in liquor and money – his (Arwind Kejriwal) image was dented because of it and that’s why they are getting fewer votes in the election… People saw that he (Arvind Kejriwal) talks about character but gets involved in liquor… In politics, allegations are made. One has to prove that he is not guilty. The truth will remain truth. When a meeting was held, I decided that I would not be part of the party – and I have remained away from that day,” Hazare told the ANI, adding that Kejriwal was overwhelmed by money and power, which led to his debacle.