No VIPs please! Kejriwal wants YOU at swearing-in ceremony

He does not have a magic wand to solve all of Delhi’s problems, but nothing is impossible if honest people join hands, believes soon-to-be Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Kejriwal, who will be administered the oath of office along with six Aam Aadmi Party Members of Legislative Assembly at the historic Ramlila Maidan in Delhi, said there will be no VIPs at the ceremony.

"It is open for all. No VIP is there. All aam admi will be present. You are all invited," he told reporters.

Portfolios of the new ministers will be announced within the next two days, he said.

The cabinet ministers who will take oath along with Kejriwal are Manish Sisodia, Rakhi Birla, Somnath Bharti, Saurabh Bhardwaj, Girish Soni and Satendra Jain.

The chief minister-designate urged honest officials and employees of the Delhi government to contact him.

"I would request them to contact me through SMS or email; we will depute good people at good places and we want to move ahead with them. I don't have a magic wand to solve all the problems, but if good, honest and efficient people join us, nothing is impossible," he said.

"For the first time, there is a chief minister who is looking for honest officials to work for him, otherwise whenever a new CM comes, he or she looks for those officials who can earn them a commission through corruption," he said.

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Asked how the AAP would verify someone’s honesty, he said, "We have a network and we will find out. A team of officials like present education secretary Rajendra Kumar are looking for honest and dynamic officials".

Kejriwal reiterated that as soon as he assumes power, he would ensure 700 litres of water supply to each household in the national capital.

While calling upon people to come to the Ramlila ground for the swearing-in ceremony, Kejriwal said he will speak to his guru Anna Hazare and ask him to grace the occasion.

"Anna Hazare is my guru and I would personally talk to him on the phone to invite him for the ceremony," he said.

"The invitation would be sent from the government's side. I had asked them to send an invitation to Hazare, Kiran Bedi and Justice Santosh Hegde," Kejriwal said.

In Ralegan Siddhi, Hazare said he would not be able to attend the ceremony on health grounds.

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Speaking about the problems that people of Delhi face, Kejriwal said he will take the help of a team of experts from IIT or IIM as and when required as "we can't fix everything ourselves".

When queried on whether he will consult the Congress, which is extending outside support to the AAP, on the appointment of the assembly Speaker, he said, "Why will we consult them".

Asked about problems of the homeless and the destitute who are forced to sleep on the open streets of Delhi during chilling winter nights, he said making arrangements for them was an important task, which could be done only with help from the 1.7 crore people of Delhi.

"There are still one lakh people who are fighting cold these days. We will soon install camps for them in different parts of Delhi," he said.

Earlier, Kejriwal held a Janta Darbar to listen to the people's grievances and their suggestions.

People from as far as Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Kerala, Bihar and Rajasthan had come to meet him.

People from various parts of Delhi, including some government employees, also met him and demanded an end to the contractual system in the Delhi government.

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Some also asked him to take into account the pollution in Yamuna River and work on it on a priority basis.

Interacting with those present, Kejriwal said, "This is not my win, it is yours. I know that most of you have come here to congratulate me, but I would say this is your win."

Lawyers, engineers and students were among those who participated in the durbar. Some of the people requested Kejriwal to take up the security cover offered by Delhi police.

"Arvindji, you have become our leader now. You should agree to take the security cover being offered by Delhi police," said Mukesh, a resident of Allahabad.

Besides complaints regarding water and electricity, people also requested that the AAP should form a team of lawyers to fight their cases free of cost.

"There are a lot of people who are not able to afford the expenditure on legal cases. We demand that the AAP should form a team of lawyers who would fight their cases at free of cost," said Prakash Singh, a lawyer.

Kejriwal said, "I have heard your complaints and suggestions and I would definitely work on them. I invite you to participate in the swearing-in ceremony to be held in Ramlila Maidan on Saturday."

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