Like Julius Caesar of William Shakespeare, Mr. Arvind Kejriwal came, he saw, he conquered. The former civil servant from the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) turned social activist, Mr. Arvind Kejriwal has risen like a phoenix from the ashes of BJP’s right-wing extremism and the inglorious fall of the secular Congress in India. Self-effacing in his personal demeanor yet impressive in his communication skills, he has captured huge attention by dint of his strong commitment to bringing about some of the fundamental and revolutionary changes in the public service delivery infrastructure. As CM of Delhi, he has wasted not a moment addressing some of the very basic problems affecting common people on daily basis. He is a visionary dreamer and a passionate doer at the same time. Every morning, he wakes up with new dreams and devises out-of-the-box solutions which are innovative, cost-effective, and result-oriented. He has surprised his electorates on more occasions than one. His latest move is equally mind-blowing. The residents of Delhi will now get almost 40 government services, including a driving license and marriage registration certificate, home-delivered. Chief Minister Mr. Arvind Kejriwal has recently launched the doorstep delivery of public services, which he says is a “revolutionary change in governance”. Kejriwal said 30 more services will be included in the project in the next month and the number will rise to 100 in two-three months. Delhi residents can dial 1076 to place a request for doorstep delivery of services which will be provided from 8 am to 10 pm. However, the call center, set up to facilitate delivery of services, will function round-the-clock. The chief minister said the AAP government wants to set up a model through home delivery of services for the entire country and the world. In the first phase, the AAP government will provide 40 services such as caste certificates, driving licenses, ration cards, birth certificates, marriage certificates, and water connections at the doorstep of Delhiites. The services will be provided for an extra fee of Rs. 50. It is a revolutionary work in governance. Delhiites will no longer need to stand in queues in government departments. Hence, it will save people’s time. The citizens will also not need to pay money to touts to get their work done. Mr. Kejriwal has some optimistic claims and he has some cogent reasons to talk tall.
Inspired and ably led by its phenomenal leader, Mr. Kejriwal, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ruling in Delhi for the past seven years has come up with a unique model of governance, popularly known as Delhi Model. It encompasses its policies and programs in various fields including health, education, women’s safety, and empowerment, doorstep delivery of services, free power, and water supply, free bus travel for women, and fighting corruption. The AAP government in Delhi is endeavoring hard to strike a balance of egalitarian development, keeping in mind the factors of sustainability and fiscal prudence. A city of 30 million residents, it has shown that it can both provide high-quality public services while running a fiscally responsible government. Power cuts were frequent, the government water utility was facing losses, and government schools and hospitals were failing. However, in the last seven years, the Delhi government has turned all this around. Delhi has now 24×7 electricity, some of the lowest electricity tariffs in the country. Four million households get a zero electricity bill. More than 1,500 residential areas in the city of Delhi have got piped water supply for the first time. The government schools in the national capital have been performing better than private schools for the last five years. Almost two lakh students shifted from private schools to government schools last year. Likewise, the mohalla clinics are providing free healthcare services to citizens at a low cost to the government. The governance model of the AAP has broken the myth that the government has to withdraw from providing basic services to ensure economic growth. The total budget of the government of Delhi has increased from Rs 300 billion in 2015 to Rs 750 billion in 2022. The state GDP has increased by 150 percent in the last decade. The Delhi government has shown that a government can provide high-quality public services to all its citizens and yet be fiscally responsible,
Going further beyond school education, there has been a visible transformation in healthcare access and quality. Delhi’s Mohalla Clinics have acquired national and international attention in the last few years. What also helped the broader appeal of the Delhi Model is that additional packages such as electricity subsidies (free up to 200 units), free bus rides for women, and drinking water 24X7 have earned the goodwill of most residents of the national capital. AAP’s back-to-back landslide victory in 2020 despite facing a massive challenge from the BJP is a vindication of the success of the Delhi Model. Thus, for a state like Punjab where narratives of patronage politics, corruption-tainted political elite, and high electricity rates, farmers’ growing dissatisfaction over the stalled transition of the ‘green economy’ increasingly saw the merit in the Delhi Model that assures corruption-free and efficient delivery of public services. What did the trick be AAP’s smart mix of welfarism with freebies? The party managed to connect with the women voters by promising them monthly cash grants of Rs.1,000 buttressing the narrative of a dignified life for women in some way within a societal setting marred by traditions of patriarchy. This seems to have worked given AAP’s good track record of delivering its key promises in Delhi and Kejriwal’s own image as an anti-corruption activist.
The Delhi Model of governance is already crossing boundaries. In the recently concluded assembly elections for five states, the Aam Aadmi Party’s historic victory in Punjab with no reliable voting base and a weak and invisible party organization is a fairy tale story almost similar to what the newbie party achieved in the Delhi elections in 2015. The AAP’s victory has no parallel to the fact that not only has it eliminated the ruling Congress where the incumbent chief minister and party president lost their seats, but the bigger shocking surprise was also that 100-year Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) ended up just winning 3 seats. Similarly, the party’s old warhorse and five-term chief minister, Mr. Prakash Singh Badal could not retain his seat in Lambi. Even SAD’s President Sukhbir Badal and former Congress Chief Minister Amarinder Singh could not retain their own seats. In short, the 2022 elections have proven to be a Waterloo for the old and established parties in Punjab. How did an eight-year-old party achieve this magical feat in a state where its party unit was dissolved by AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal over indiscipline after the 2017 electoral debacle? Behind the AAP revolution in Punjab, there is a single and uncomplicated factor that has vastly shaped the insurgent party’s historic victory: the ‘Delhi Model’. By no means, does it discount the role of other factors? One of the key factors was the electorate’s disillusionment with the established parties in the state. Chief Minister Amarinder Singh’s unceremonious removal by the party’s leadership from Delhi, his persistent row with newly appointed party president Navjot Singh Sidhu and the party’s known Dalit face Charanjit Singh Channi’s elevation to the hot-seat just months before elections played a key role in the party’s disastrous downfall. Likewise, the disillusioned voter in Punjab was desperately looking for a change and a new template of governance that could address deep-rooted corruption, patronage politics, and end elite capture. Kejriwal’s ‘Delhi Model’ of governance based on efficient service delivery at the grass-root level truly captured the psyche of voters in Punjab.
While the momentous victory in Punjab was a well-deserved reward for its hard work in Delhi, governing Punjab and delivering on the Delhi Model is never going to be a child’s play. Running a rich city with a stable revenue base and strong governance legacy is far easier than a full-fledged state with multiple, structural crises that continue to afflict the key northern state. It has to be seen how the AAP can address some of these structural challenges and how it can transform education, health, and other public services with a depleted coffer. Testing times ahead await Delhi Model as the same is pressed into action on a larger scale and in a far more challenging environment.
The writer is a civil servant by profession, a writer by choice and a motivational speaker by passion!