Lok Sabha polls 2019: Kejriwal promises Delhi statehood if AAP wins all 7 seats

Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party convener Arvind Kejriwal promised on Thursday that Delhi would get full statehood if AAP won all seven of the city’s Lok Sabha seats, as he stepped up his party’s campaign. He also said every family in the city would get a house if his party won.

Two public meetings

At a meeting in Gandhi Nagar in east Delhi, Kejriwal accused the Congress of ignoring AAP’s repeated offers of an alliance to defeat the BJP in Delhi. He argued that the anti-BJP vote should not be split anywhere in India, and that there should be a single candidate against the BJP in Delhi as well. He also alleged that the Congress was trying to weaken regional parties in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

At a second meeting in Azadpur, in north Delhi, he made his strongest pitch for statehood. One account of his speeches put the timeframe as two years; another reported him saying two months after winning all seven seats. He said that ten years from the day Delhi became a full state, every resident would have a proper house, and urged voters to cast their ballot for statehood rather than to choose a Prime Minister. He also sought control of the Delhi Police to improve women’s safety and law and order, and criticised the Centre’s handling of the Delhi Development Authority.

AAP revived its statehood demand after February 14, when the Supreme Court referred the question of transfers and postings of officials to a larger bench.

Reactions

Delhi Congress president Sheila Dikshit, a three-time Chief Minister, said Kejriwal had never approached her about an alliance and that AAP had reached a stage of frustration. Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari accused Kejriwal of a U-turn on the Congress.

Development works

Kejriwal also launched development works in four unauthorised colonies of the Gandhi Nagar Assembly constituency, a flagship AAP programme. The project covers 181 roads totalling 9.30 km and drains of 6.10 km, expected to benefit around one lakh residents.

What happened next

In the 2020 Delhi Assembly election AAP won 62 seats to the BJP’s 8, and Arvind Kejriwal remained Chief Minister.

See also: Aam Aadmi Party.

Originally published on 22 February 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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