Kejriwal challenges BJP over Punjab school conditions, calls for joint inspection

Punjab Newsline | New Delhi

AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal has challenged the BJP to conduct a joint inspection of 1,000 government schools each in Punjab and Gujarat to compare their condition.

Kejriwal accused the BJP of attempting to defame Punjab’s government schools and said the party should allow the condition of schools in both states to be assessed publicly.

“I challenge the BJP. I will give a list of 1,000 schools in Punjab, and you give a list of 1,000 schools in Gujarat. Let us jointly inspect them,” Kejriwal said.

He proposed that representatives of both parties, along with the media, visit the schools and compare their infrastructure and facilities.

Kejriwal claimed that Punjab has around 19,700 government schools, of which about 19,200 have been significantly improved under the AAP government. He said work is underway in the remaining 500 schools and they are expected to be completed within the next one-and-a-half to two years.

He also claimed that Punjab is now ranked first in the country in government school education, citing a NITI Aayog report. According to Kejriwal, Punjab was ranked 28th when the AAP government came to power in 2022.

Kejriwal also criticised the BJP over a video shared by former cricketer and Rajya Sabha MP Harbhajan Singh after he joined the BJP. The video was later identified as being from 2018, when Punjab was under the Congress government.

Kejriwal said the video showed the poor condition of a school at the time but was being presented as evidence of the current state of Punjab’s schools.

He further cited the example of Akali supporter Rattan Dhillon, who had raised concerns about a school on social media. Kejriwal said Punjab’s Education Minister responded by inviting Dhillon and issuing a grant for the school, following which Dhillon praised the minister.

Kejriwal said the government was open to criticism and would work to correct genuine shortcomings, but alleged that old or AI-edited videos should not be used to mislead people.

He said the BJP should accept his challenge so that people across the country can compare the performance of the Gujarat government, which has been in power for decades, with Punjab’s AAP government.