Aam Aadmi Party’s anti-corruption helpline,receives over 300 calls in three hours

New Delhi – Aam Aadmi Party’s anti-corruption helpline, which became operational from this morning, has already received more than 300 calls in the first three hours. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal yesterday announced the helpline number, (011) 27357169, which he said will help the common man combat corruption in Delhi.

Addressing a press conference in his office complex, the 45-year-old leader said the public can now call on the helpline to report corrupt practices by any wing of the state government.

“This announcement makes every Delhi citizen an anti-corruption inspector,” Mr Kejriwal said. (Highlights of Arvind Kejriwal’s press conference)

“The purpose is to create fear in the minds of every corrupt individual,” the Chief Minister said.

The helpline will be open from 8 am to 10 pm everyday, Mr Kejriwal announced. “We are in the process of acquiring a four-digit helpline number which is easier to remember,” he said.

Corruption was the Aam Aadmi Party’s biggest plank in the run-up to the Delhi Assembly elections. A dedicated helpline against graft was one of the priorities in the party’s manifesto.

The AAP was formed in late 2012 after a two-year-long nationwide movement against corruption led by Mr Kejriwal’s former mentor and Gandhian activist Anna Hazare.

The rookie party stunned the ruling Congress and the BJP in Delhi Assembly elections last month, winning 28 of the 70 seats and forming the government with outside support from the Congress.

The AAP now plans to convert growing public anger over corruption into votes in the national elections, due by May.