File photo of Arvind Kejriwal
At a time when farmers are driving political campaigns, Arvind Kejriwal has dedicated his outreach to Gajendra Singh, the man who hanged himself at his rally last month.
The Delhi Chief Minister shared the stage with members of Gajendra Singh's family today at an event in Bawana in the city's north and garlanded his photo before naming a compensation scheme after the Rajasthan farmer.
"Gajendra's death reflected what was happening all over the country. He is not here today but his death forced the government to think about compensation. That is why we have named our scheme after him," Mr Kejriwal said.
He promised that the Delhi government would give jobs to Gajendra Singh's children.
As part of the scheme, he distributed nearly 100 cheques to farmers who have suffered massive damage to crops in recent months because of unseasonal rain.
Mr Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party were sharply criticized for not stopping the rally on April 22 after the farmer hanged himself. Mr Kejriwal gave a short speech before going to the hospital where Gajendra Singh was declared dead.
"I think that was my mistake. Probably I should not have spoken after he was seen on the tree. If that has hurt anyone's sentiments I would like to apologise," Mr Kejriwal said two days later.