Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor Arvind Kejriwal today declined to predict the exact number of seats his party would win in the Delhi Assembly elections, but added that he was hopeful of his party getting a clear majority.
Asked by anchor Saurav Sharma at the daylong India TV Conclave 'Chunav Manch' here today whether he was confident of his party getting a majority this time, Kejriwal replied, "One should never be overconfident. One thing I learnt during my time in jail was that one should not have ego (ahankar). History is witness to how egos had toppled big emperors and dictators."
Kejriwal said, "There was a time when I used to write on a slip of paper the number of seats my party would win. Now I realise it was my ahankar (ego). I never take people for granted. I seek the blessings of my people. I can only say, after going among the people, that voters will probably give us a clear majority this time."
Kejriwal said, "It was my ego (ahankar) that I had predicted that we would win 100 seats in Punjab assembly elections. I shall not give in writing anymore now (about seat prediction)."
When it was pointed out that his rival in the New Delhi seat, BJP candidate Parvesh Verma, has predicted that he can give in writing that that Kejriwal would lose by 20,000 votes, the former CM replied, "Let him write."
Asked about the dichotomy between AAP staying as a partner in the Congress-led INDIA bloc and now becoming the rival of Congress in Delhi, Kejriwal replied, "On the national level, AAP is a small party. If you want relevance on the national level, you will have to choose from any of the two big blocs existing. We chose one of these two blocs."
Kejriwal said, "As far as states are concerned, we do not have alliances with any other party, either in Delhi or Punjab. The day AAP will become strong on the national level, I do not feel we need to be part of any bloc. It is our political compulsion to be a part of any one of the two blocs. In Lok Sabha elections, when he goes to voters in Delhi, we tell them we need to win all seven seats so that we can be part of a government at the Centre."
Watch the full interview of Arvind Kejriwal in Chunav Manch