Yes, we have made several mistakes: Arvind Kejriwal

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister has confessed for the first time that his government made several mistakes in the beginning because they had no prior experience of governance.In an exclusive interview to Raj Chengappa, Editor-in-Chief of The Tribune Group of Newspapers, Arvind Kejriwal shared his views on a number of issues ranging from the performance of his govt to his views on Indian economy and FDI in retail.Kejriwal blasted vested interests and media for trying to defame his government.“The media is busy wondering why Arvind has taken a three-bedroom house or a four-bedroom house; why has he changed his sweater, sandals. The entire effort is to make us fail. To show that we don't know how to govern. Obviously, there are interests,” said Kejriwal.Confessing for the first time that his government indeed committed mistakes, Kejriwal said that it happened because they lacked prior experience of governance.Pointing out the failure of Janta Darbar as one of those mistakes, Kejriwal said, “we had made arrangements for 2,000-3,000 people, but 20,000 came. I think we should have studied models that have been implemented in other states before doing that. There are many such small steps that we had to take back. One obviously learns from that.”Kejriwal also said that it was unfair to judge his govt so quickly as it was only a month and a half old.“We have been in power only a month and a half, and many people are already judging us or writing us off. We have taken over from a government that was there for 15 years. You can imagine the vested interests that would be there. We don't know which officer is aligned with whom. Building your team takes time. You need 20 to 25 days to identify the officers. You cannot randomly appoint someone to a post. Good officers are hard to find. It is unfair to judge us so quickly,” added Kejriwal.Kejriwal once again reiterated that a person does not lose the right to protest just because he is holding a constitutional post and that A CM has every right to come out in the street if he finds himself helpless in a particular situation.“I don't agree that because one is holding a constitutional office one loses the right to protest or one should not protest. If it is required one should fight for justice in a non-violent manner. Fighting for justice in the streets is very much a constitutional method. It is part of our Constitution under Article 19. Why should it be restricted to only ordinary people?“Why cannot a Chief Minister protest if he finds himself helpless in a particular situation and is not able to do [what he wants]. This is a wrong notion of democracy that a Chief Minister should only work from his air-conditioned office and not come out in the street. He must come out in the streets and that is what I did,” said Kejriwal.Explaining the circumstances that forced him to sit on dharna recently, the Delhi CM said that he was appalled to see the callous approach of the Police towards crime against women including incidents of rape.“One woman was burnt alive in another area and the SHO refused to arrest the people. Our minister was standing outside the house, when all the culprits were inside the house. Area residents were gathered, the SHO was also standing there, and people were asking him to arrest the suspects. But the SHO refused to make arrests. He said ‘get me transferred if you can'. If this is the case then where do you stand?“That is why I staged the dharna; to do something about the police. Some said I was doing ‘tamasha'. No one does tamasha in 4° C at night. Others do tamasha sitting in the AC. I think the dharna went down well with the ordinary people,” said Kejriwal.On a question relating to control over Delhi Police, Kejriwal said that he does not mind the central government controlling Police in areas falling under NDMC and Delhi cantt army area but the control of Police in the MCD areas should be given to the Delhi government.Kejriwal blasted those who, according to him, are unnecessarily raising hue and cry over subsidies being offered to people of Delhi for water and electricity. He wondered why the people are silent over crores of subsidies being extened to industries owned by Tatas and Reliance.“Do you know that we give Rs 6 lakh crore worth of tax subsidy to the industry? It goes to Reliance, Tatas. No one complains if you give it to the rich. But if you give a common man Rs 200 worth of subsidy everyone is up in arms. Giving subsidy to the poor is a government's responsibility. World over subsidies are given, including in the US.“I could have purchased a helicopter worth Rs 450 crore for myself after becoming the Chief Minister, as all the others do. I could have claimed I'll travel from home to office in the helicopter and not cause inconvenience to the people on the roads. People would have called me an efficient and modern Chief Minister. But I did not buy a helicopter, and gave subsidy worth Rs 250 crore, and that is causing people heartburn!” added Kejriwal.On a question relating to the denial of FDI in retail in Delhi, Kejriwal said that he asked those supporting the demand for allowance of FDI in retail to come up with valid reasons in support of their demand and explain what benefits we can expect from FDI in retail but they failed to cite a single benefit.“We had researched on the subject for quite some time while making our manifesto. Many editors from business newspapers have met me on this, and I asked them to tell me what will be the benefits to the country from this FDI. I offered to change the decision if there are benefits.“I was told of four essential benefits: better price for famers, more choice and better price for consumers, and more employment. I have read a lot on the 130 countries that have FDI in multi-brand retail, and found evidence of only more choice for consumers. Even in the US there is a huge opposition against Walmart. I asked for names of the countries where farmers have got better prices, they could give me none,” added Kejriwal.Kejriwal refuted allegations that he and his party were socialists in their economic outlook . Kejriwal said that AAP believes in encouraging private business because they firmly believed that the government has no business to be in business.“We have to encourage private business. The government has no business to be in business. That is very clear. There is a false propaganda that we are socialists and we'll nationalise everything. We have no plan to nationalise anything. An Indian is a born entrepreneur, it is in our blood. But the present policies and inspectors do not let people do trade or business in peace.“We would like to deregulate business. The government will have no interference. We'll let people do business without any permissions; just don't do anything wrong, for which no one will be spared,” said kejriwal.“Soon we are going to begin relaying the roads in all Delhi industrial areas simultaneously. We'll provide all the facilities required for business. We will also open more industrial areas. I have had many business delegations come to complain of VAT regulations and forms. I immediately consulted the VAT commissioner and scrapped many of the forms and changed procedures.“We'll have a situation that no trader would have to come to the VAT office. Do everything online. I get the officers concerned and traders to meet and take decisions on the spot. They get up only when there is agreement. This is not rocket science,” added Kejriwal.Stressing the need for decentralization in decision making, Kejriwal said that No policy made in Delhi can succeed, howsoever well intentioned it may be.“No policy made in Delhi can succeed, howsoever well intentioned (though I suspect the intention too in most policies). The government cannot be run from Delhi. We are bringing the Swaraj Bill in the Cabinet next month. Money will not be spent on things the government decides, but what the residents of the area want. Delhi will be divided into around 3,000 mohallas, where people will meet every month and decide what their priorities are. They'll be given a sum of money as per their share to spend. Some people fear it could be misused.“ Even if they all divide the money up amongst themselves, it'll be better than politicians getting it. But they won't do that, as a mother cares more about her child's education than the education secretary. They will decide their own priorities and make their own budgets. Why should the government decide who needs ration or job security. Let the area residents themselves decide which scheme to run, said Kejriwal.Kejriwal termed the central government's Lokpal Bill as a complete nonsense. He accused the UPA govt of trying to protect the corrupt instead of checking corruption.“The Centre's Lokpal Bill is complete nonsense. It cannot even send a rat to jail, forget about Raja or Kalmadi. And now they are planning to water down the Prevention of Corruption Act. They are taking out the effective provisions from this Act. Their intention is not to check corruption, but to protect the corrupt,” added Kejriwal.When asked as to how his own Jan Lokpal Bill was different from the central govt's bill, Kejriwal claimed that his version of Lokpal Bill will ensure certainty and swiftness of punishment.“Right from the Prime Minister to Chief Minister, all are covered under this Bill. If anyone indulges in corruption, he will get punishment and will go to jail within six months to one year. His assets will be confiscated and he will lose his job. We have defined time limits for every action. Finally it is the intention that matters. Their intention was bad, whereas we have tried to plug every loophole,” said Kejriwal.When asked about the reasons behind his fall out with Anna Hazare, Kejriwal said that Anna did not want to venture into politics and that was the only reason for parting of ways.“After we tried everything to make the government bring in the Lokpal Bill, and failed, we decided to enter politics to do it ourselves. But he [Anna] said he did not want to enter politics.“I am in touch with Anna Hazare and spoke to him just 20 minutes back, and requested him to come to Delhi on February 16 when we pass the Jan Lokpal Bill. He said that he was pre-occupied with other engagements,” said Kejriwal.On Kiran Bedi, he said that since she was fond of BJP, the question should be asked to her only.Kejriwal also refused to comment on either Narendra Modi or Rahul Gandhi.“Please don't ask me to comment on Rahul and Modi. It is no good commenting on them,” said Kejriwal.Kejriwal made irt clear that he never sought the support of Congress for forming the govt in Delhi. In fact, Kejriwal said, Congress thrust the support on him.“We did not take their support. They thrust it on us. Till now we have never spoken to them and never had any meeting with them. The fact is that people have no hope from mainstream and larger political parties, people are fed up with their politics. We were nowhere, we had no standing. Arvind Kejriwal was a nobody. Why have we been brought to power?“ There was a great political vacuum and these politicians had looted the country and people just too long. People were fed up with their corrupt politics. They wanted to support honest people. We talked of honesty and demonstrated it, so they brought us forward, said Kejriwal.Kejriwal said he was not concerned about fate of the government. Kejriwal also denied that he was on ac confrontation mode deliberately so that Congress withdraws the support and the government falls.“No, this is a media creation. We are not worried about whether the government survives for another day or not. We are only worried about people's welfare. If the government is running, we should work. If the government falls, fresh elections will be held. If we are elected again, we will form and run the government. If the people do not want to elect us again, we will sit at our homes, said Kejriwal.On his plans for upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Kejriwal said that his party will contest from all those seats where the candidates from other parties are criminals, corrupt, communal or have dynastic politics.“We will try to contest on all those seats where the candidates from other parties are criminals, corrupt, communal or have dynastic politics. These four types of candidates should be defeated. We will field good candidates and we will tell the people that earlier you had no option, but this time you will have an option, and you should choose honest and clean persons. After all, it is not my election, it is theirs — the people's elections,” said Kejriwal.When asked why was he making serious allegations against leaders like Modi and Sonia Gandhi without providing any solid evidence, Kejriwal said that he get all the information from media only.“I did not say it on my own. I just took it from the media. After all, you people have carried such articles about them. We have just endorsed it. You search the Google and you will find 10 stories of corruption against these people,” added Kejriwal.Although Kejriwal accused Delhi Lt Gov Najeeb Jung of leaking confidential communication to the public, he agreed that his party colleagues should avoid language like the one that Aashutosh used when he called Lt Guv a “Congress agent”.“We have observed during the past 10-15 days too many things are leaking from the LG's office and this has raised suspicion. For instance, I was to meet the LG today, there was an agenda; but all those things were leaked out to the media last evening. So the meeting became futile. Am I supposed to respond to the LG through the media? This is not the kind of relationship that can exist between a Chief Minister and an LG. That raised suspicion, but my party colleague should have avoided using the language you mentioned,” said Kejriwal.

Yes, we have made several mistakes: Arvind Kejriwal

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister has confessed for the first time that his government made several mistakes in the beginning because they had no prior experience of governance.In an exclusive interview to Raj Chengappa, Editor-in-Chief

Read all the Breaking News Live on indiatvnews.com and Get Latest English News & Updates from Politics and National Section