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Is AAP taking advantage of Diwali to seek donation in the name of ‘clean politics'?

On the occasion of Diwali, the AAP launched a social media campaign--#CleanPoliticsThisDiwali--and sought donation from supporters.

By Oneindia
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Google Oneindia News

New Delhi, Oct 18: Diwali, the festival of lights, has got a great significance in the lives of Indians, especially the Hindus; nonetheless people belonging to all communities and religions take part in it in their own ways, making it the biggest festival in the country.

Diwali is not only the time to clean our houses and decorate them with lights and beautiful artifacts, but it is also the time when the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi, is believed to bless her devotees.

AAP

So, taking inspirations from all sorts of Diwali-related beliefs, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on the occasion of the festival on Wednesday launched a social media campaign on Twitter--#CleanPoliticsThisDiwali.

The AAP hashtag was trending on Twitter on Wednesday, where the political party tried to link Diwali with politics and asked its supporters to donate funds to help clean up "dirty politics" in the process.

The idea is definitely noble, especially at a time when politics has been badly infected by corruption, non-performance and unaccountability.

The occasion choosen by the AAP too is right, as Diwali is also about triumph of truth over evil as Lord Rama returned back to Ayodhya (his kingdom) after completing 14 years of banishment and killing Ravana.

But, in times of political uncertainty and untrustworthiness, the AAP too on many occasions have failed its voters by taking them for a ride.

The AAP, which came into formation after the anti-corruption crusade back in 2012, of late has strayed away from some of its core values, including eradicating corruption, as some of its own leaders were accused of corruption.

The AAP is also fast turning like other political parties as it has fallen victim to opportunism and the leaders of the party are always seen busy levelling charges against other parties and their leaders, instead of fulfilling their public duties.

While appealing to people to donate on the occasion of Diwali, AAP convener and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in an appeal to donors wrote: "Political funding is one of the major root causes of corruption in India. According to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) report, 80 per cent of political funding of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress is from unknown sources.

"It creates a government with vested interests, and its loyalty is always leaning towards their funding agencies instead of the welfare of aam aadmis (commoners) like us. This is probably why majority of our citizens are struggling for basic human necessities even after 70 years of independence."

"The AAP revolutionised the Indian political space with its commitment to deliver good governance. In Delhi, the AAP has brought major transformation in education and healthcare in just two-and-a-half years. It is time for the AAP to innovate in the field of political funding. We have to show to the rest of political parties that we can manage our organisational and political expenses without compromising on our integrity, commitments and values," he added.

Kejriwal informed that the party has formed an "outreach team" to connect, communicate and engage with its supporters and well-wishers.

"Its specific task is to create a culture of honest political funding, to ensure that the idea of clean alternate politics remains alive and can grow. This team will reach out to you to seek your support.

"I urge you to join the outreach team's efforts to solve the biggest source of corruption in India--political funding. All it will take is Rs 100 from each and every one of us! Pledge your support today to root out corruption from political funding in India," Kejriwal stated.

Many on Twitter supported the campaign of the AAP and tweeted:

However, critics of the AAP raised questions regarding the entire campaign:

OneIndia News

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