Punjab: Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said that a law should be made against religious conversion but nobody should be wrongly harassed.
Stating that religion is a private matter, Mr Kejriwal while addressing a public gathering in Jalandhar said, “A law should definitely be made against religious conversions but nobody should be wrongly harassed through this. Conversions done by scaring them is wrong.”
The AAP national convener also said that everybody has a right to worship as per their choice.
Several states including Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have brought in laws to regulate forcible religious conversions. Several other states like Assam are also mulling similar laws.
Kejriwal also announced that there was a serious issue of cleanliness across cities including Ludhiana, Bathinda, Amritsar and Jalandhar. If AAP was voted to power, it would provide best cleanliness facilities including proper sewage, drainage, solid management, in the cities so that they look beautiful.
He further added that AAP had started door-step services related to various government offices in Delhi where people did not need to make various rounds to government offices, and they could make a call on a helpline number. A Delhi government official would visit their home to collect documents and the service would be delivered in a week or 10 days. Similarly, the party would replicate the system in Punjab also.
He further said Mohalla clinics and civil hospitals would be revamped; there would be improvement in government schools so that the middle class should not bear the hefty fees of private schools, 24 hours power supply and 24 hours drinking water facility would also be provided.
“We will make 16000 clinics and renovate hospitals in Punjab,” he added.
To woo traders and businessmen, Kejriwal announced that the AAP government will not impose any tax or not enhance any existing taxes in the coming five years. “We will cover the entire state with CCTV network for women’s safety and to control crime as Delhi has more CCTV cameras than New York, London and other big cities of the world,” added Kejriwal.
In the last guarantees, he said that the roads in the existing markets in the cities of Punjab were in shambles and had no facility of public toilets or proper parking, so the AAP would create proper infrastructure including parking, public toilets and other facilities for the markets.
“Like Delhi, Punjab too will get all the benefits,” the Delhi chief minister said.
Punjab will vote on February 20 while the counting of votes is set to take place on March 10.