Need law to curb forceful conversion but its misusemust be checked: Kejriwal
Religion is a private matter, the Delhi chief minister said in an interaction with traders and industrialists in Jalandhar ahead of Punjab assembly elections scheduled on February 20. The results of the 117-seat assembly will be declared on March 10.
JALANDHAR: A law should be made against forced religious conversions but nobody should be wrongly harassed, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal said on Saturday.
Religion is a private matter, the Delhi chief minister said in an interaction with traders and industrialists in Jalandhar ahead of Punjab assembly elections scheduled on February 20. The results of the 117-seat assembly will be declared on March 10.
“Conversion done through coercion or by offering aid is wrong,” he said. “A law should definitely be made against religious conversions, but nobody should be wrongly harassed through this.”
Several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, have enacted laws to regulate forcible religious conversions. Other states such as Assam are also mulling similar laws. All these states are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Kejriwal also made several poll promises, including no new tax and no increase in existing taxes for the urban sector in Punjab if his party came to power in the state.
Traders are sometimes concerned that taxes will rise if AAP comes to power to fulfil promises of free electricity, and ₹1,000 to women, among others, he said. “We have not increased a penny in tax during the seven-year tenure in Delhi,” Kejriwal said. “I and Bhagwant Mann assured the traders of Punjab that no new tax be imposed and no enhancement in the existing taxes in the coming five years.”
The AAP will promote businesses of Punjab like never before and drive the state into prosperity, he said. “We will end raid Raj in Punjab like Delhi and resolve industry related problems and incentivise setting up of new industries,” Kejriwal said.
He promised that the AAP will begin doorstep delivery services and neighbourhood clinics if voted to power. “We will make 16,000 clinics and renovate hospitals in Punjab,” Kejriwal said at a press conference.
“Like Delhi, Punjab too will get all the benefits,” said Kejriwal, flanked by the party’s state chief and chief ministerial face Bhagwant Mann.
He attacked other political parties and asked people to vote for the AAP. “The Congress has ruled (Punjab) for 26 years, and the Badal family has ruled for 19 years. They’ve done whatever they could. They have nothing to do now. If you vote for them, you will waste five years. AAP has a plan, and good intentions. Give us a chance for five years and see what we do. If we don’t, I won’t come to you for votes the next time.”
Stating that there are serious issues of cleanliness in cities such as Ludhiana, Bathinda, Amritsar and Jalandhar, he promised to provide best cleanliness facilities, including proper sewage, drainage and solid waste management.
He also reiterated his party’s promises of providing 24-hour power supply and drinking water in the state. The AAP chief also promised to replicate Delhi model for women’s security by installing cameras across the state.
“We will cover the entire state with CCTV network for women’s safety and to control crime,” he said. “Delhi has more CCTV cameras than New York, London and other big cities of the world.”
He also promised to create proper infrastructure such as parking, public toilets and other facilities for Punjab’s markets.
Meanwhile, on the issue of the release of 1993 Delhi bomb blast convict and Sikh prisoner Davinder Pal Bhullar, Kejriwal said it was “a very sensitive matter”.
Ahead the assembly elections, a campaign is being run by Bhullar’s family and several Sikh bodies for his release. In 2020, the Sentence Review Board of the Delhi government rejected the permanent release request of Bhullar, with the Shiromani Akali Dal accusing Kejriwal of “not signing the release papers of Bhullar”.
On Saturday, Kejriwal slammed SAD for “doing dirty politics on the issue”.