Promises are easy to make but hard to keep.

The first lesson in reality. The Aam Aadmi Party won 28 out of a total of 70 seats in the assembly elections in Delhi, by making many promises to the ordinary people. They promised severe punishment for corrupt politicians and civil servants. This will take time. They promised to do away with VIP perks that politicians have awarded themselves in the 66 years since independence. That they have done, forcing Vasundhara Raje of the BJP to reduce security personnel in Rajasthan by 300. They also promised permanent status to all contract workers of Delhi, regularisation of unauthorised colonies, 700 liters of free water everyday for every household and reducing the cost of electricity by half, up to 400 units per month. Today they held the first ' janta darbar ' or public hearing to interact with the public. More than 50,000 people turned up creating such chaos that the police had to rescue the Chief Minister and other ministers for their safety. Most were contract workers wanting to be made permanent. That will cost vast sums of money as their salaries will increase, they will have to be paid Dearness Allowance at 90% of basic salary, healthcare costs and pensions. Contractors will refuse to bear such burden so either they will sack all workers or ask the government to take them over. Some people wanted water connections so that they can avail their free water straight away. When AAP was campaigning against high electricity charges they advised people not to pay their bills. Some people took them literally and had their electricity discontinued. They say it is not their fault and want their electricity supply to be resumed straight away. Auto-rickshaw drivers campaigned vigorously for AAP before elections. The Congress led central government raised gas prices by over 10% after the elections. Autos run on Compressed Natural Gas so they want their meter charges to be doubled so that they are rewarded for their loyalty. That will increase commuting costs for the people of Delhi, resulting in anger. The Congress at the center has been distributing handouts since 2004 to win elections bringing the economy to its knees. The AAP tried to outdo the Congress government in Delhi in making promises. It is now finding that winning an election is only the beginning. It is our misfortune that politicians are ready to sacrifice the nation only for personal wealth. Today people have become much more aware. There is not place to hide.