Gujarat / AAP to contest on all seats in 2022 Gujarat Assembly polls: Kejriwal

Ahmedabad: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said that the party will contest on all seats in the 2022 Gujarat legislative assembly polls. He was addressing a press conference in Ahmedabad. "Our candidates will contest on all seats," Kejriwal said.

"People here (Gujarat) think if electricity can be free in Delhi, why not here? Likewise, for hospitals also the condition has not improved in 70 years here. But things will change now," he added.

Earlier in the day, Gujarat's senior journalist Isudan Gadhvi joined the AAP in the presence of Kejriwal.

Kejriwal reached Gujarat on Monday for a one-day visit to the state. “Havey badlashe Gujarat. Kaley hun Gujarat aavi rahyo chhu, Gujarat na bhai-behno ney malish (the state will transform now, am coming to Gujarat tomorrow and meet the people of the state),” Kejriwal had tweeted in Gujarati ahead of his visit on Sunday.

This is Kejriwal’s second visit to Gujarat after his party won 27 out of 120 seats in the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) elections in 2021. The Kejriwal-led party had fielded candidates across all the local bodies such as municipal corporations, municipalities, district and taluka panchayats.

He will also inaugurate the party's new state office located on Ashram Road. Kejriwal will leave for Delhi on the same day, according to party spokesperson Tuli Banerjee.

Kejriwal's visit comes a day after two estranged sects of the Patidar (Patel) community - Kadva Patel and Leuva Patel - came on a common platform to praise AAP during an event in Rajkot’s Kagwad.