What’s wrong in providing free education and health care: Kejriwal
The Hindu
In Gujarat, Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party national convener defends party’s welfare schemes
The Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener on Saturday continued his defence of welfare schemes against the criticism of political parties offering “freebies” or what Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently termed the “revadi culture”.
He asked what’s wrong in providing “free education and healthcare services” to the citizens since it is the government’s mandate to provide such facilities to the taxpaying public. “What’s better, the government providing free education and health or waiving loans of certain corporates?” he said during an interaction with traders and businessmen in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
Mr. Kejriwal is on a two-day tour of the State as part of the campaign for the Assembly poll in December.
“In Delhi, it is our policy to offer free medical treatment to all, whether it costs ₹10 lakh or ₹40 lakh and irrespective of whether you are rich or poor,” he said, adding, “Similarly, shouldn’t the government be providing free and quality education? It is a work of nation-building.”
Despite providing the best quality education, free health care and free power, he said the Delhi government is debt-free unlike the BJP-led Gujarat government which is in the red by over ₹3 lakh crore.
Courting local traders, businessmen and owners of micro, small and medium enterprises, Mr. Kejriwal said his party will form an “advisory body” of traders to guide the government if it came to power in Gujarat with representatives from various sectors.
This was his second interaction with local traders and small businessmen in the Saurashtra region ahead of the State polls. Earlier, Mr. Kejriwal held interactions in Rajkot, the main business hub of the region.
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