AAP raising BJP's chief ministerial face issue to divert attention from failures of Kejriwal govt

Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari on Monday accused AAP leaders of raising the issue of the chief ministerial candidate to divert attention from "failures" of the Kejriwal government.

The Parliamentary Board of BJP will decide who will be chief minister if the party wins the Assembly polls in Delhi, he said.

Citing the Supreme Court's tough talk on air pollution and water supply in Delhi, Tiwari said Delhi BJP has been raising these issues for long but the Kejriwal government has been issuing advertisements of its achievements.

"It's an attempt to divert attention from all these issues. All these talks are attempts to divert focus from the failures of Kejriwal government on air pollution, water supply contamination, and poor transport facility in Delhi," Tiwari said when asked to comment on Union minister Hardeep Puri's statement on him being the party's chief ministerial candidate.

Puri on Sunday said at a Delhi BJP event that the party will fight the assembly election under the leadership of Manoj Tiwari and will ensure that he becomes the chief minister, only to backtrack on his statement hours later.

Immediately after Puri's statement, AAP leader Sanjay Singh mocked Delhi BJP claiming that their party will have a field day in Assembly polls if Tiwari was BJP's chief ministerial candidate.

The Aam Aadmi Party on Monday claimed that "strong infighting" within the Delhi BJP forced Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri to clarify that they have not finalised the chief ministerial candidate for the assembly elections due early next year.

Tiwari said that a decision about the Chief Minister from the party in any state is made by the BJP's Parliamentary Board.

"I can say only that as Delhi BJP chief it is my resolve to provide happiness to the people and make Delhi the best capital city. We will ensure clean air and pure water supply within three-and-a-half years of coming to power," he said.

Senior BJP leaders including Delhi unit's Assembly election in-charge and Union minister Prakash Javadekar had earlier said that the Delhi BJP will fight the Assembly polls under the leadership of Tiwari.

However, the party has refused to make an official announcement of its chief ministerial candidate for the polls due early next year.