MP civic polls: AAP testing electoral waters with promise of free water, better schools

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is trying its luck in the municipal elections for the first time in Madhya Pradesh, promising free water, better schools and healthcare facilities. The party has chosen mayoral candidates for 14 out of 16 municipal corporations in the state, the AAP's state unit chief Pankaj Singh said on Saturday.

"We have chosen mayoral candidates in 14 out of 16 municipal corporations. We have also fielded candidates for corporators post," Singh said.

The elections to 413 urban bodies in Madhya Pradesh will be held on July 6 and 13.


The party chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will take out a roadshow in support of his party's mayoral candidate Rani Agrawal in Singrauli during the day.

"Our major poll plank for the municipal elections is free water. We are going to make water tax-free in the urban civic bodies where we win," Singh said.

He further claimed that schools in the state were in a bad shape. As many as 22,000 institutions were shut down in the 2018. Private schools, mainly of BJP leaders, were thriving, while the government-run institutions were shutting down, he alleged.

At least 42,000 schools did not have drinking water facility, where either handpumps or taps were not functioning, the AAP leader claimed, adding that 67,000 schools did not have electricity.

"We want to improve schools and healthcare facilities in the municipal limits," he said.

Apart from the AAP, the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) will also make its maiden foray into the municipal polls in the state. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has been addressing public meetings in several parts of the state in the run up to the polls.