(MENAFN- Gulf Times) A day after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) registered a historic victory in the Delhi assembly polls, chief minister-designate Arvind Kejriwal yesterday sought the central government's co-operation to ensure full statehood for the national capital.
Kejriwal meanwhile declined to take the Z security cover accorded to him, party sources said after he met Home Minister Rajnath Singh at his official residence.
Delhi's full statehood was one of the major poll promises of the AAP.
"We asked them to support full statehood to Delhi. Both (AAP and Bharatiya Janata Party) are in a majority and it is the best time to avail of the opportunity of granting full statehood to Delhi," AAP leader Manish Sisodia, who accompanied Kejriwal during the half-an-hour meeting, told reporters.
He also said that the home minister assured the AAP of the central government's "constructive co-operation" and that "the party line would not come in between working of the two governments."
Earlier in the day, the AAP leaders called on Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu and discussed various issues concerning the national capital.
During this meeting, issues related to granting full statehood to Delhi and giving land from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for building schools, parking lots and play grounds were discussed.
The AAP leaders also discussed regularisation of the city's unauthorised colonies.
At the meeting, Naidu emphasised the need for a pro-active role of the Delhi government in mobilising investments for housing including slum redevelopment, solid waste management and sanitation.
Naidu also said that prompt action needs to be taken to allot over 24,000 houses that were constructed under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.
Kejriwal also met Delhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and conveyed to him that he had been elected the leader of the AAP legislature party.
Kejriwal, to be sworn in as Delhi's chief minister on Saturday at the Ramlila Ground for a second time, also met President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan in the evening.
Meanwhile, Sisodia said the AAP government would like to work in tandem with the central government as it believes in positive politics and its aim is to make Delhi a better place to live.
"We believe in positive and competitive politics. We are here to make Delhi better and would like to work with the Centre in tandem," Sisodia, who is likely to be a senior minister in Kejriwal's cabinet said.
Sisodia, who was education and public works department minister in the AAP's 49-day government after the 2013 polls, said the unfinished work which had come to an end on February 14 last year would begin again. The AAP government resigned on February 14 last year.
Besides, health and education would be the new government's priority, he said. The party has promised 20 new colleges and 30,000 more beds in hospitals.
Sisodia, who retained his Patparganj assembly seat, said the AAP was committed to making Delhi a corruption-free city.
lAfter lying dormant since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the stunning victory of the AAP in Delhi has given the party's Kerala unit a much needed boost.
Jubilant local AAP supporters sported white caps and brooms - the party's election symbol - and broke into celebrations late Tuesday after the party's stunning victory in Delhi.
State convener of AAP, award winning novelist and short story writer Sarah Joseph who contested the Thrissur Lok Sabha seat, said their slogan is 'Now Delhi, Next Kerala' as they have a good support base in the southern state.
"In five months time, all our functionaries will be elected in a democratic manner and will pave the way for us to become a full-fledged political party," Joseph said.
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