On Guj visit, Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann offer prayers at Swaminarayan temple

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann on Sunday offered prayers at the Swaminarayan temple in Shahibaug area of Ahmedabad on the concluding day of their two-day visit.

Notably, Kejriwal, who is the national convener of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and Mann had paid obeisance at a temple in the Nikol area of Ahmedabad on Saturday and held a roadshow, virtually launching the campaign for the Assembly elections in Gujarat, due in December this year. During their visit to the Swaminarayan Temple on Sunday, Kejriwal and Mann were accompanied by Gujarat AAP leaders including Isudan Gadhvi and Gopal Italia. As per the schedule shared by the state AAP unit, Kejriwal and Mann will leave for Delhi on Sunday evening.

Swaminarayan Sampraday and other sects in Hinduism and temples enjoy huge followings in Gujarat.

On Saturday, the CMs of Delhi and Punjab, both ruled by AAP, began their Ahmedabad visit by visiting the Gandhi Ashram and paying tribute to Mahatma Gandhi. Later in the day, they held a roadshow in the Nikol and Bapunagar localities with a large turnout of AAP members and supporters.

After the roadshow, Kejriwal had appealed to the people of Gujarat to give the AAP a chance and accused the ruling BJP of becoming arrogant. With Congress in disarray, the AAP, buoyed by its spectacular performance in Punjab in recent elections, is aiming to project itself as the only alternative to the ruling BJP in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.