Arvind Kejriwal takes oath as the eighth Chief Minister of Delhi

Feb 14, 2015 - 3:36 am EST @theindpanorama India 0

NEW DELHI: Arvind Kejriwal took oath as Delhi’s youngest chief minister on Saturday with a speech that thanked the aam aadmi, reassured the minorities, reached out to the opposition and promised an end to corruption and VIP culture in five years.

Addressing a crowd of about 50,000 people at the Ramlila Maidan — a city landmark where the anti-corruption movement spearheaded by Anna Hazare first started — Kejriwal laid all speculations about his party’s national ambition to rest saying that AAP‘s massive mandate was a “miracle” and also a “directive” for him to focus only on Delhi for the next five years.

“Over the last few days I have heard some of our volunteers talk about fighting more state elections. This is wrong. We paid for our arrogance in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. God punished us for it. I will stay here for the next five years and work for Delhi with full dedication,” he said. AAP, particularly Kejriwal, had received a lot of flak from the capital’s electorate for the impulsive exit from power and also the decision to contest on 440 Lok Sabha seats barely six after its impressive debut in the capital in 2013

Listing out his priorities for the next five years, the new CM assured that his government will pass the Janlokpal Bill and also revive the anti-corruption helpline that was started during his 49-day stint in power. “I’ll try to make Delhi the first corruption-free state of the country. I will repeat what I said on December 28 — if someone asks you for a bribe, don’t refuse. Pick up your mobile phones and record it. We will act upon it,” he said.