Two days after he was granted bail and walked out of prison after six months, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced his shock resignation from the top post at a party meeting Sunday afternoon.
"Two days later, I will resign as chief minister. I will not sit on that chair till the people announce their verdict. Elections in Delhi are months away. I got justice from the legal court, now I will get justice from the people's court. I will sit on the Chief Minister's chair only after the order of the people," he said.
"I want to ask the people of Delhi, is Kejriwal innocent or guilty? If I have worked, vote for me," he said, adding that a meeting of AAP MLAs will be held within the next two days to choose the new chief minister for the national capital.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader said a member of the party will be named chief minister after his resignation. He said he would go among the people and ask for their support. Kejriwal also demanded that the elections in the national capital, scheduled for February, be held in November along with the polls in Maharashtra.
In his address to the AAP workers, Kejriwal launched an all-out attack against the Narendra Modi government and said it was more dictatorial than the British.
He said he did not resign as chief minister despite being arrested because he wanted to save democracy. "They have registered cases against (Karnataka Chief Minister) Siddaramaiah, (Kerala Chief Minister) Pinarayi Vijayan, (Bengal Chief Minister) Mamata didi (Banerjee). I want to appeal to non-BJP, do not resign if they register cases against you. This is their new game," he said.
Kejriwal said he had also spoken to former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia about the issue. Sisodia too was recently granted bail in connection with corruption allegations surrounding Delhi's now-scrapped liquor policy. "I spoke to Manish, he too has said that he will handle the post only after the people say we are honest. My and Sisodia's fate are in your hands now," he said.
Responding to the shocking development, BJP's Harish Khurana questioned why the AAP leader is creating a drama. "Why after 48 hours? He should resign today. In the past too, he has done this. People of Delhi are asking, he can't go to the secretariat, can't sign documents? What is the point then?" Asked if the BJP was ready for early polls, Khurana replied, "We are ready, whether it is today or tomorrow. We will return to power in Delhi after 25 years."
The Delhi Congress welcomed Kejriwal's resignation, saying it was better late than never. "It would have been better if he had resigned when Delhi was facing floods and drinking water shortage. I hope Delhi soon gets a new chief minister who can go to his office and sign files," said Delhi Congress chief Devendra Yadav.
