Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the AAP's alliance with the Congress was not permanent, and the two parties came together to defeat the BJP in the Lok Sabha election. In an exclusive interview with India Today's Rajdeep Sardesai, Kejriwal said a "big surprise" was awaiting on June 4 as the opposition INDIA bloc would win the Lok Sabha polls.
"The AAP is not in a permanent marriage with Congress. Our aim is to defeat the BJP for now and end the dictatorship and goondagardi of the present regime," Kejriwal said.
While AAP and Congress are in an alliance in Delhi, the parties are contesting against each other in neighbouring Punjab.
"It is important to save the country. AAP and Congress came together wherever an alliance was needed to defeat the BJP and put up one candidate. The BJP does not have any existence in Punjab," he said.
The AAP chief said he wouldn't be cowed down and there was no question of him resigning as the Chief Minister of Delhi.
Speaking on his arrest in the now-scrapped Delhi liquor policy case, Kejriwal said, "My going back to jail is not an issue. This country’s future is at stake... Let them jail me for as long as they want, I will not be cowed down."
"There is no question of resigning as Delhi Chief Minister only because the BJP wants me to," he further said.
Kejriwal, who is out on interim bail, will have to surrender before jail authorities on June 2 as directed by the Supreme Court. The AAP supremo was granted interim bail to campaign in the Lok Sabha polls.
The AAP chief, however, warned that all the top opposition leaders would be jailed if the BJP returned to power for a third term and cited the political situation in Russia under Vladimir Putin.
He also claimed the AAP leaders Satyender Jain and Manish Sisodia received messages in jail asking them to join the BJP in exchange for bail in their respective cases.
While Jain has been arrested in connection with a 2017 money laundering case, Sisodia is behind bars in the liquor policy case.
Kejriwal, however, refused to comment on the alleged assault case involving AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal as the matter was in court.
The Delhi Chief Minister reiterated his charge that the Prime Minister would soon end the political career of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath if the BJP returned to power.
"I maintain my stand that if PM Modi wins, Yogi Adityanath's future will be in doubt. Let BJP deny it," he said.
On several occasions, Kejriwal has claimed that Union Home Minister Amit Shah would be made the next Prime Minister if the BJP won the polls and Adityanath would be removed from his post.
