Punjab Chief Minister and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann addresses the media after meeting Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at Tihar Jail, in New Delhi on April 30, 2024. | Photo Credit: PTI
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on April 30 met his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal in Tihar jail and said the AAP supremo asked him to actively campaign for INDIA bloc candidates in the Lok Sabha elections.
Mr. Mann told reporters that Mr. Kejriwal’s health is fine, he is getting insulin and undergoing regular check-ups.
Also Read | Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal given insulin after spike in sugar level; AAP welcomes move
The Delhi Chief Minister asked people not to worry about him and exercise their franchise during the elections, he said.
This was Mr. Mann’s second meeting in jail with Mr. Kejriwal in a fortnight.
Mr. Mann told reporters that he met Mr. Kejriwal the same way he met him the first time.
“We were separated by an iron mesh. This could be the height of their hatred. Arvind Kejriwal has asked me to tell people not to worry about him and vote. Please vote to save democracy,” Mr. Mann said.
The Punjab Chief Minister said he told Mr. Kejriwal that he recently visited Gujarat to campaign for the party’s candidates in Bharuch and Bhavnagar.
“There was a mind-blowing response. The entire country is saying that whatever happened with Mr. Kejriwal was wrong. I also went to Assam. He asked me to come to Delhi and also campaign for INDIA bloc candidates in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and wherever I am called,” Mr. Mann said.
“These elections are not about winning or losing. It is about saving the Constitution and democracy,” he added.
The Punjab Chief Minister said Mr. Kejriwal also enquired about the wellbeing of his daughter.
“We talked about our families. He asked about my daughter Niyamat, who is one month old now. He asked how the farm produce has been in Punjab and if any facilities are being affected due to the Model Code of Conduct,” according to Mr. Mann.
“I told him that people are getting all the facilities. I informed him that 158 children from Punjab government schools have cleared the JEE (Mains). This is the first time it has happened. He was quite happy. This was the education revolution of our dreams. He congratulated the teachers, parents and the children,” he added.
On Monday, Mr. Kejriwal’s wife Sunita and Delhi Minister Atishi met him.
Mr. Kejriwal has been lodged in Tihar jail under judicial custody in an excise policy-linked money-laundering case since April 1.
