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AAP GOVT
Promises up for reality check
Beacon of change, no red |
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CM, the guy next door
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They won it, now time to do it For now, AAP has a legion of admirers in Delhi and beyond, but the sceptics are waiting for the star performers to slip on any of the popular promises they’ve made. The show has just started.
IT was the summer of 1996 when the Lok Sabha threw up a hung Parliament and no party or alliance had the numbers to form the government. The Congress under PV Narasimha Rao came under immense pressure from a section of the party to extend outside support to the Third Front even as President Shankar Dayal Sharma invited Atal Behari Vajpayee, leader of the single largest party, to form the government. Interpreting the verdict, Rao, known as the modern day Chankaya, said people had voted for all parties to sit in the Opposition. This was the closest explanation valid for the Delhi Assembly results, till once again the Congress moved the pieces to back the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in forming the government. There is a view that the Congress decision was taken to trap AAP and force it to take a stand since its declared position was not to take support from either the Congress or BJP. Refusing to bite the bullet would have meant AAP was shying away from responsibility. What perhaps the Congress failed to comprehend was that AAP was not a traditional political party. It had a sort of referendum before deciding to form the government. There were protests within the Congress against backing AAP, much like the 1996 move for which Rao had to explain to party workers why he supported the United Front government. With Arvind Kejriwal committed to cleaning up Delhi Government and local bodies, both the Congress and BJP would be under public scrutiny. The dilemma for them would be keeping their respective political identities intact without compromising on their unique
ideologies.
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Promises up for reality check The electorate's expectations, nonetheless, are high, and the Congress and BJP would be waiting only too eagerly for AAP to slip. On their part, AAP is clear in its line: there has to be an intent, which had been missing all this while, and they are here for “system change”. “The promises are very much possible. The party has done its homework before making them,” asserts AAP senior member and Cabinet Minister Manish Sisodia. The party has chalked out an action plan for nearly all that is there on its manifesto. Here’s a look at what’s promised, what are the hurdles to achieving it.
Water for all Seen as one of the most populist promises, the AAP manifesto says every household will get at least 700 litres of water a day. This is part of the party's long-term plan to address socio-economic disparities at a time when people in many areas of the National Capital do not have access to basic amenities. The party cites the WHO to say the amount of water required for a person in a tropical urban area is 140-150 litres. In Delhi the average family size is five persons. This takes the minimum household requirement to 750 litres a day. Families consuming within the limit will get it free. Those who use more will pay for the entire water used, unlike the income tax slabs. Also, the tariff for those using over 1,000 litres would be higher. This amount would cross-subsidise the free water. Atishi Marlena, part of AAP’s manifesto committee, says this will not only encourage water conservation but also ensure subsidy goes only to people who need it. But Marlena accepts that in areas that face water shortage it will be a challenge. In certain areas, the water tanker mafia has not been allowing regular supply.
Power tariff to be halved AAP has promised to cut the electricity bills by 50 per cent. The new government in three months proposes to audit the accounts of the three private power companies in Delhi, which are accused of pocketing unfair profits. “Deliberately inflated bills” and “fast running” meters would be corrected within a month with the help of independent agencies. Cases registered against those who did not pay power bills during AAP’s campaign in March would be withdrawn. The party points out that since 2002, when electricity distribution was privatised in Delhi, transmission and distribution losses have come down from 40 per cent to about 5 per cent. Yet the benefit from this has not translated into lower tariff, which has increased by 300 per cent. AAP alleges that discoms declared a loss of Rs 630 crore in 2010, demanding increase in the tariff. But the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission found that the firms had made a profit of Rs 3,577 crore, and recommended a 25 per cent reduction in the tariff. AAP also claims that discoms during the past three years have been purchasing electricity at high rates and selling it at subsidised rates to their partner concerns, thereby showing inflated losses. These will be audited. These measures would reduce the power tariff by 50 per cent without any subsidy. In the long run, the AAP government will work towards ending private monopoly, allowing the consumers to choose their supplier.
Jan Lokpal in 15 days Kejriwal has promised a Delhi Jan Lokpal Bill will be passed within 15 days. The challenge will be to ensure that the Delhi Jan Lokpal Bill is not contrary to the Lokpal Bill passed recently in Parliament. The other question is whether the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre would obstruct its passage. The legislation would require the Delhi Lieut-Governor's approval. The Congress, however, would be on a sticky wicket with a strong national sentiment against corruption. Last week, Kejriwal made it clear in an 18-point letter to UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi that his government would probe the various scams, including the Commonwealth Games. AAP's version of Lokpal would have far more powers than the Central legislation, ensuring an independent mechanism for grievance redress within a specified timeframe.
‘Swaraj’, complete statehood The party has said that within three months it will legislate the Swaraj Bill to devolve powers directly to the people and promote community involvement through “mohalla sabhas”. At the macro level, the party would fight for full statehood and at the micro it would devolve power to the community to make decisions for their locality. AAP has proposed that discretionary funds (Rs 4 crore) falling under the MLA Local Area Development Fund Scheme would be allocated to the mohalla sabhas. The party expects a struggle as the Centre’s consent will be required. The AAP government also wants control over the Delhi Police, except in certain sensitive areas such as in Lutyens’ Delhi or Cantonment area in view of national security.
Citizens’ security force Taking forward its idea of community participation, the AAP government would create “vigilante groups” in each ward within 100 days of assuming office. These would comprise young men and women who would be trained to help women, children and senior citizens in distress. These, however, would not be parallel to the armed forces or the Delhi Police. AAP has also promised to constitute fast-track courts for ensuring trial in cases of crimes against women.
Illegal colonies, slums One-third of the people in Delhi live in unauthorised settlements. AAP has said they would be granted ownership rights within a year. The party aims to provide affordable legal housing to such people. It would also ensure slum-dwellers are not displaced without rehabilitation.
Schools, health & toilets AAP has promised 500 new schools, improved health facilities and 2 lakh community toilets, half of which will be for women. Kejriwal wants a development model focused on basic amenities, as opposed to the Sheila Dikshit government's “costly double-decker flyovers”. The party says it would look for innovative solutions if land is not provided by the Delhi Development Authority, which it accuses of preferring private developers. Schools and primary health centres would be made accountable to the local communities by involving stakeholders. AAP has promised 2 lakh public toilets and better sewerage in five years time.
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Beacon of change, no red How a Chief Minister or members of his Cabinet move around can be taken as a measure of their accessibility by the common man in the street. Arvind Kejriwal has already scored a high on this count. A quick look at what is different may be an indication of things to come: Security The Delhi CM is entitled to 'Z' category security, unlike his counterparts in most other states. Kejriwal has refused this, saying “God is my biggest security”. The refusal came with its bit of drama, as the Delhi Police tried hard to convince the former IRS officer to accept the security. Security was also sent by the Uttar Pradesh Police at his residence in Girnar Society in Ghaziabad, which was sent away by Kejriwal within a day. Generally, six personal security officers are attached to the CM round the clock, while a maximum of two head constables along with eight constables are stationed at the official residence.
Residence Delhi ministers are entitled to Type 6 or Type 7 houses, while the outgoing Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit was living in a Type 8 house in Lutyens Delhi since 2003. Kejriwal has said no to a 'bungalow' also. He has decided to accept only a flat to live in Delhi. On the same lines, his Cabinet colleagues Manish Sisodia, Somnath Bharti, Satyendra Kumar Jain, Rakhi Birla, Saurabh Bhardwaj and Girish Soni too are expected to live in government flats.
Transport Kejriwal has declined an official vehicle with a red beacon, which his predecessor used. There also used to be a pilot vehicle with four security personnel. The AAP CM will travel by a blue Wagon R, apparently donated by a party supporter. To drive home the point, Kejriwal and his team of 27 MLAs took the Metro to reach the swearing-in ceremony.
Accessibility To ensure a connect with the public, AAP representatives have virtually formalised the system of “mohalla sabhas”, or public meetings. This was on display even before the MLAs took charge on
Saturday.
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CM, the guy next door From
being a taxman to an NGO activist and now the Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal's journey has been unusual, to say the least. The mounting burden of expectations may seem unnerving — or exciting to those across the fence — but the Kejriwal family is confident he would be the agent of change AAP has promised. “My son is honest and he will do what he has promised,” says father Govind Kejriwal. For mother Geeta Kejriwal, 'hard work and dedication' are the words that define her son. “We never thought this day would come,” she says. “We have never stopped him from doing what he feels is right.” The family may have its moments of nervousness, but Kejriwal is now focused on business, and has little time for ceremony. In fact, he is averse to any ceremony. He does not even celebrate his or his children's birthday. Party workers tell you Kejriwal is a demanding man to work with, but he is more respected than feared. “We have hardly seen him lose temper. When annoyed, he simply goes quiet and retreats to his office, shutting the door behind him,” said one AAP worker. Rather than take people to task when annoyed, Kejriwal takes the task on himself. The former revenue service officer is particularly hard to please when it comes to checking documents. “He never tires of revising a draft, making margin jottings during innumerable meetings with senior colleagues, typing, chopping, changing paragraphs, sentences and words,” the worker said. An IIT-trained mechanical engineer, Kejriwal joined the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) in 1995, but resigned after five years. While Additional Commissioner of Income Tax in Delhi, Kejriwal had quietly set up Parivartan, an organisation that has never been officially registered. The 2006 winner of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership, Kejriwal was also among the key drivers of the campaign for the Central RTI Act. Material worth do not define the AAP leader, but that does raise curiosity regarding his assets. According to the election time declaration, he has Rs 2 crore worth of moveable and immovable assets, including those of his wife. His personal assets were worth Rs 93 lakh and a liability of Rs 23,550 of unpaid electricity bills. The moveable assets include cash in hand and bank deposits worth Rs 1.6 lakh. Kejriwal's immoveable properties include land in Indirapuram in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad district and ancestral agricultural land at Shivani village in Haryana's Karnal district. His income in 2012-13 was just Rs 2.05 lakh, while his wife Sunita's was Rs 9.8 lakh. She owns a flat in Gurgaon worth Rs 1 crore and has moveable property of Rs 16.8 lakh. She has a house loan liability of Rs 30 lakh and loan from relatives Rs 11
lakh.
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THE Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) promised to be the game-changer in Delhi politics and governance. The time to do that is now upon it. The freshly minted Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, dismisses any suggestion that the promises made by his party are “far-fetched” or populist.