Delhi Health Minister and AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj has raised concerns about the Indian government’s decision to continue using the Covishield vaccine, despite most European nations banning it. According to reports, AstraZeneca has admitted in court documents to rare and dangerous side effects of its vaccine. Watch!
Tag: Saurabh Bharadwaj
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Arvind Kejriwal being pushed towards ‘slow death’ by denying insulin, doctor’s consultations: AAP
New Delhi, The Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday alleged that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is being pushed towards a “slow death” inside Tihar jail by denying him insulin and consultations with his doctor. Kejriwal, who has Type-2 diabetes, has been asking for insulin and a video conferencing with his family doctor but his requests are being denied by the jail administration, party spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj said in a press conference. “I want to say with full responsibility that a conspiracy is underway for the slow death of Kejriwal,” Bharadwaj claimed citing blood sugar readings of the Chief Minister in jail. He also slammed the Tihar administration, BJP, Centre and Delhi LG for allegedly denying insulin to Kejriwal and said the Delhi Chief Minister had been suffering from diabetes for the last 20-22 years. On Friday, the chief minister council Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi said Kejriwal has not been administered insulin to control his sugar levels since his arrest, terming it “shocking” and “alarming”. AllUttar PradeshMaharashtraTamil NaduWest BengalBiharKarnatakaAndhra PradeshTelanganaKeralaMadhya PradeshRajasthanDelhiOther States The ED had on Thursday claimed before the court that Kejriwal was eating food high in sugar like mangoes and sweets every day, despite having Type-2 diabetes, to create grounds for medical bail. Kejriwal, however, refuted the ED’s claims by asserting before a court that the food he consumed was in conformity with the diet chart prepared by his doctor. “Out of 48 meals sent from home, only three times mangoes were there…,” Singhvi told the court. Bharadwaj said Kejriwal was allowed by the court to use a machine in the jail to monitor his daily blood sugar levels.
“Overall, it was a conspiracy to finish Kejriwal so his multiple organ damage and when he comes out of jail after 2-4 months he goes for treatment of kidney, heart and other organs,” said Bharadwaj, who holds the portfolio of health in Delhi government.
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Lok Sabha polls 2024: Delhi: BJP targets third consecutive sweep, AAP hopes to capitalise on sympathy wave for Kejriwal
With the BJP looking to increase its vote share and sweeping Delhi’s seven Lok Sabha seats for the third consecutive time, the AAP — contesting the polls in an alliance with the Congress — hopes to use the “sympathy wave” for arrested Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to break the saffron party’s streak. Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) constituents Congress and AAP are contesting the Lok Sabha elections in an alliance in Delhi, paving the way for a direct contest with the BJP. The AAP has fielded candidates from four seats while the Congress is contesting from three constituencies.
Both the BJP and the AAP-Congress combine have fielded high-profile candidates, setting the stage for a keen contest to gain electoral supremacy.
Virendra Sachdeva, the BJP’s Delhi unit chief, has said the challenge for the party this time is to increase the margin of victory. The Northeast Delhi seat, dominated by Purvanchalis and Muslims, will witness a key battle between two candidates who hail from Bihar. The BJP has fielded Manoj Tiwari, who is eyeing a third term in the Lok Sabha while the Congress’ Kanhaiya Kumar will make his electoral debut for the grand old party.
Kumar had unsuccessfully contested the 2019 Lok Sabha polls on a CPI ticket from the Begusarai seat in Bihar.
A BJP leader in Delhi, requesting anonymity, said Tiwari has a high chance of retaining the seat and asserted that Kumar’s past as a student leader and his association with the Left is likely to have a polarising effect. The Congress is looking to capitalise on Kumar’s popularity and his oratory skills to make a mark in the crucial battle ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections in 2025. In East Delhi, AAP has fielded Kuldeep Kumar — its Dalit MLA — from the general seat in a move that may also impact voters of the community in the 12 reserved Assembly segments spread over different Lok Sabha seats.
Besides capitalising on a direct contest with the BJP, AAP claims there is an anti-Modi sentiment among Dalit and Muslim voters in East Delhi that will benefit it electorally in the seat.
In 2019, Gautam Gambhir won the seat after defeating the Congress’ Arvinder Singh Lovely by 3.93 lakh votes. AAP’s Atishi was third in the contest.
This time, the coming together of AAP and the Congress is likely to consolidate the anti-BJP vote, AAP leaders said.
BJP leaders in Delhi, however, are confident of retaining all the seven seats the party has held since 2014.
They pointed out that the votes polled by party candidates on each of the seven seats in 2019 were higher than the total votes secured by the AAP and the Congress candidates.
In the 2019 elections, the BJP had secured 56.5 per cent of the polled votes in the national capital, the Congress 22 per cent, and the AAP 18.1 per cent.
The saffron party has also sought to balance the caste factor in announcing its candidates — fielding Harsh Malhotra, a Punjabi from East Delhi, Baniya leader Praveen Khandelwal from Chandni Chowk, MLA and Gujjar leader Ramvir Singh Bidhuri from South Delhi, Jat leader Kamaljeet Sehrawat from West Delhi, and Dalit leader Yogendra Chandolia from the reserved North West Delhi seat.
It has fielded two women candidates — Sehrawat and Bansuri Swaraj from New Delhi — and that will help bring more women votes, the BJP leaders said.
AAP is looking to make electoral gains through sympathy in the aftermath of Kejriwal’s arrest in a money-laundering case linked to the Delhi government’s now-scrapped excise policy.
The party’s campaign also revolves around Kejriwal’s arrest. Its ‘Jail Ka Jawab Vote Se’ campaign urges people to reply to Kejriwal’s arrest with their votes.
Earlier this month, in an interaction with PTI editors at the news agency’s headquarters, Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj had said, “At this point, I do not know about the status outside Delhi but I can say with confidence about Delhi that there is massive sympathy among the people for AAP, Arvind Kejriwal. Even the people who support the BJP are feeling that this is too much and should not have been done.”
The AAP has also fielded three-time MLA Somnath Bharti from the New Delhi constituency, Sahiram Pehelwan from South Delhi and Congress ex-MP Mahabal Mishra from West Delhi.
The Congress, which announced its candidates on April 14, has fielded veteran leader JP Agarwal from Chandni Chowk and former BJP MP Udit Raj fron the reserved Northwest Delhi constituency.
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‘Sunita Kejriwal Is Best Person To…’: Saurabh Bharadwaj Amid Buzz Over Delhi CM’s Wife Leading AAP |
NEW DELHI: Amid growing speculation regarding the involvement of Sunita Kejriwal, wife of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in the affairs of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), senior party leader and Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj has expressed confidence in her ability to “keep the party together.” Addressing the party’s crisis, Bharadwaj emphasized that Sunita Kejriwal has consistently portrayed herself as a conduit for her husband’s messages, particularly during his current detention. Bharadwaj also underscored the positive influence of her presence on the morale of party members and supporters. “She is delivering the messages of Arvind Kejriwal ji. This has had a great impact on our party cadre and among our sympathisers. We want to propagate it. In the present circumstances, she is the best person to keep the party together,” Bharadwaj said while speaking to ANI.
#WATCH | Delhi: party leader and Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj says, “For years Sunita Kejriwal has been with Arvind Kejriwal, through thick and thin…If such a person stays in the party then she acts as a glue in the party and we see it as a blessing… Since she is a family… pic.twitter.com/SCz0m4EQFJ
— ANI (@ANI) April 5, 2024
Sunita Kejriwal’s Role Amidst Delhi CM’s Arrest
Arvind Kejriwal, the national convenor of AAP, is currently detained in connection with a money-laundering case related to the Delhi government’s previous excise policy. With his detention extending until April 15, the spotlight has turned to his wife, Sunita Kejriwal, who has been actively involved in disseminating his messages from custody.
Sunita Kejriwal’s Public Engagements
Highlighting Sunita Kejriwal’s recent participation in the ‘Loktantra Bachao’ rally organized by the INDIA bloc on March 31, Bharadwaj interpreted her presence as a sign of resilience against attempts to weaken the party. He noted the emotional resonance her appearance had among party members, particularly in the face of adversity.
Sunita Kejriwal’s Involvement In AAP Campaigns
Responding to inquiries about Sunita Kejriwal’s potential role in the party’s campaigning for upcoming elections, Bharadwaj expressed enthusiasm but stressed that any decision regarding her involvement would ultimately be a personal one.
In light of recent events, speculation has arisen regarding the significance of Sunita Kejriwal’s public appearances following her husband’s arrest. However, Bharadwaj refuted claims of any deliberate messaging behind her actions, emphasizing her commitment to the party’s cause.
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Arvind Kejriwal: Sunita Kejriwal best person to keep AAP together: Saurabh Bharadwaj
AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj has said that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s wife Sunita is the best person to keep the party together in the prevailing circumstances and asserted that her presence has had a “positive effect” on the cadre. In an interaction with PTI editors at the agency’s headquarters here, Bharadwaj, who is also a cabinet minister in the Delhi government, said Sunita Kejriwal has always said that she is the “messenger” of the Delhi chief minister who is currently in jail.
Noting that the politics of a party does not just revolve around its manifesto, Bharadwaj said the support base and the emotional connection between the cadre and the top leadership also plays a crucial role in keeping an organisation together.
Sunita Kejriwal’s presence has had a positive impact, he adderted. “She is delivering the messages of Arvind Kejriwal ji. This has had a great impact on our party cadre and among our sympathisers. We want to propagate it. In the present circumstances, she is the best person to keep the party together,” Bharadwaj said.
Kejriwal, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money-laundering case linked to the Delhi government’s now-scrapped excise policy, is in judicial custody till April 15.
His wife has addressed three digital briefings so far, in which she read out his messages from the ED custody and Tihar Jail. In a political debut of sorts, she read out his message at the INDIA bloc ‘maharally’ on March 31. Asked if Sunita Kejriwal will campaign for the party in the Lok Sabha polls, he said, “We would love if this thing happens… if Sunita ji does take part in campaigning but it is her personal decision.”
On further prodding whether there was some kind of “messaging” in Sunita Kejriwal taking centre stage after her husband’s arrest, the minister replied in the negative.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, who too was arrested in the excise policy case and received bail on Wednesday, had met Sunita Kejriwal immediately after getting out of jail and was seen touching her feet.
Talking about it, the minister said if someone’s elder brother is in some difficulty, he is duty-bound to look after his family.
“This is our culture. The BJP was saying that there would be fights among the party members after Kejriwal’s arrest. Sanjay Singh considers Arvind Kejriwal his family, his elder brother. So, he touched her (Sunita Kejriwal) feet. We are working as one unit and one family,” he said.