Delhi gets over AAP-Da

As we were discussing the outcome of the Delhi Assembly elections in the studio of a prominent TV channel in Delhi, suddenly we heard cheers from the newsroom outside. For a moment, it was as if India had won a cricket match against Pakistan at Wankhede Stadium but it soon dawned that the young journalists outside were celebrating AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal’s defeat in the polls. My fellow panellist asked me how a newsroom can openly celebrate a political win and I told him not to forget that these members of the fourth estate were also citizens of the national capital and were as much keen about deliverance from the absolute misgovernance that had become the hallmark of the Aam Aadmi Party Government in the capital city.

False Promises of Good Governance

Evidently, there was strong anti-incumbency against the AAP Government, as it reneged on most of the promises it had made to the people of Delhi from modern infrastructure to clean Yamuna. But more than that it was the utter disillusionment with the lofty ideals of good governance that the ex-Indian Revenue Service officer and Magsaysay awardee professed so vociferously at the peak of the anti-corruption Anna movement yet miserably failed to deliver on any count. The opposition BJP was able to not only able to expose the chinks in the governance armour of the Kejriwal and subsequent Atishi Marlena Government but also the double speak, double standards and hypocrisy that the AAP Chief practised, whether it be his lifestyle or the rampant corruption indulged by him and his cohorts from liquor scam to ‘Sheesh Mahal’.

Penchant for Playing Victim Card

There is a saying that one can fool some people for some time but one cannot fool all the people all the time. That’s what Kejriwal & Co attempted to do during their terms. They cried foul every time, blamed the BJP or the Congress for all their miseries and constantly played the victim card, much to the disappointment of Delhi’s denizens.

Expert in Blame Game

Instead of Delhi becoming a world-class city in sync with its stature as the national capital of the world’s oldest and largest democracy, all Delhiites could read, watch and hear on all media platforms was the constant bickering with the Lt Governor, the endless tussle with the Centre and internecine battles even with his own allies in the UPA and later the I.N.D.I. Alliance. Hardly any positive news came from the capital. From air pollution to water pollution, garbage and the poor condition of roads, there was no ownership by the AAP for the failure but only a perennial blame game, leading to no solutions on vexed issues, over the last three tenures of his Government. Earlier too, there were BJP or Congress Governments in the capital, which shared cordial working relationship with Central Governments, led by rival parties. But the kind of animosity that was witnessed during Kejriwal’s regime was unprecedented, to say the least.

Therefore, it would be unfair to blame either the successive Lt Governors or the Central Government as they were the real victims of the AAP Chief’s vituperative brand of politics, where he was constantly in a combative mode, indulging in spit and run politics.

With the help of his Left liberal and anarchist friends across the globe, he was able to create a narrative about his education and health models, which too was more superficial in nature and exaggerated through massive and extravagant publicity spends. The defeat of his confidant and head of his school project Manish Sisodia was an outright rejection of those claims.

For Kejriwal, Delhi was more of a launching pad for his national ambitions. Hardly a few days into his maiden Delhi victory, he chose to take Prime Minister Narendra Modi head on in far away Varanasi rather than improving the lot of the people in the national capital. He appeared more interested in fighting elections across the country, from Uttarakhand to Madhya Pradesh to Goa rather than strengthening governance in Delhi. He used Delhi to win Punjab and tried to use Punjab and its resources to retain Delhi. To the large majority of the people in Delhi, his anarchist methods and his extravagant life, in sharp contrast to his professed lofty ideals, were nothing less than a shocker. They realised that they were not backing a champion of their causes but a charlatan, with absolutely no scruples.

Anybody with his ear to the ground was sure of the fall of Kejriwal. Bitter critics of BJP sought to bemoan that had Congress and AAP worked together, the outcome of the poll would have been different. They pointed out that if Congress party’s vote share was added to AAP’s tally, they would have trounced the saffron party. But does politics work like that? Politics is less about arithmetic and more about chemistry. Maybe, lesser number of people would have voted for Congress, if it had gone for an alliance as the grand old party was also targeting the corruption and misgovernance of AAP. Perhaps AAP wouldn’t have got even the seats it had retained if it had gone with the Congress, which lacked both policies and leadership, leave alone any vision for the city.

Moreover, it would be highly unfair to attribute AAP’s loss only to anti-incumbency. Yes, it was a vote against AAP but it was also a vote for BJP. The pragmatic people of Delhi were frustrated with the rantings and ruminations of the previous Government and wanted a regime that would foster cordial ties with the Central Government to facilitate unhindered development of the city. They have seen that despite being out of power for 26 years, the BJP led Government at the Centre had consistently worked for the betterment of the people of Delhi whether it be the expansion of road and metro connectivity with the neighbouring States or infrastructure development in the city.

The educated denizens of the city also knew how the Punjab Government had failed to deliver on the freebies announced by the AAP party in comparison to successful implementation of Ladki Behna and Ladli Behen schemes in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh respectively led by BJP Governments. They knew that the doles announced for temple priests and Granthis were more Jumlas as the Maulvis of the Masjids were yet to be paid their promised emoluments. They realised that they were losing out in terms of benefits from Central Government schemes like Ayushman Bharat, which the AAP Government declined to implement in the city.

Delhi was always perceived to be a stronghold of the Jan Sangh but the changed demographic profile of the city was fed on a narrative that the party catered only to certain segments like the Punjabis and the trading community. Yet when it came to the Lok Sabha, they reposed their faith in Prime Minister Modi in successive elections. But whether it be the announcement of the Eighth Pay Commission or the new tax regime, the city’s middle class and predominantly Government employees realised that there was only one party which thought of their well being also.

“We accept the mandate of the people with great humility. I congratulate the BJP for this victory and I hope they will fulfil all the promises for which people have voted for them. We have done a lot of work in the field of health, education, infrastructure in the last 10 years. We will not only play the role of a constructive opposition but will also remain among the people and continue to serve them. We did not come into politics for the sake of power, we considered politics as a medium through which the people could be served” — Arvind Kejriwal, National Convenor, Aam Aadmi Party

A glance at BJP’s victory in different constituencies clearly shows its appeal cutting across castes, classes, linguistic groups, rural-urban divide etc. The mammoth win of the party in the Muslim majority Mustafabad seat is a clear indicator that even the minority community has started trusting the BJP as against the appeasement politics of the other two parties.

Also it would be an injustice not to give due credit to the well oiled organisational machinery of the party and its ideological fountainhead and affiliates who worked over time to ensure the party’s emphatic victory after 27 years of Vanvas. The Panna Pramukh led volunteers spread across the length and breadth of the city not only taking the party’s development agenda to every nook and corner but also ensuring that the electorate come out and vote.

Instead of Delhi becoming a world-class city, all Delhiites could read, watch and hear on all media platforms AAP’s constant bickering with Lt Governor, endless tussle with Centre and internecine battles with allies

Last but not the least, the vote was also a thumbs up to Hindutva and nationalist politics as against the anarchist brand of politics led by Urban Naxals. In state after state, people are identifying themselves with the larger national and cultural identity and outrightly rejecting the divisive and casteist politics, as is evident from yet another humiliating rout of the Congress party, despite its desperate efforts at revival.

Apparently, the media’s focus over the next couple of days is going to be Kaun Banega Mukhyamantri? But the people of Delhi did not vote for any specific candidate but for Modi Ki Guarantee and larger national interests, more than anything else.