For the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), 2022 promises to be a successful year when it can finally overcome the hump of being a ‘Delhi-centric’ regional organization and spread its wings in the five electoral states of Punjab, Goa, Uttarakhand. could. , Uttar Pradesh and, later in the year, Gujarat as well. If it manages to do so, and it looks like AAP will achieve what no other regional party has been able to do so far, be it TMC, BJD, TDP, TRS or YSR Congress, which undoubtedly has its own- Very strong in their field. State led by charismatic leaders.
The campaign’s style sheet is the same: campaigning in Punjab, Uttarakhand and Goa led by AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, releasing manifesto promises or ‘Kejriwal ki guarantee’, a strong grassroots campaign with party volunteers aimed at every household. have to reach. Guarantee card’, the ‘Delhi model of development’ with heavy emphasis on access to women with health, education, water, electricity and monthly allowance for all those above the age of 18 years. AAP has also promised to create jobs and provide unemployment allowance. for youth. In Uttar Pradesh, the campaign is being led by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and AAP’s Rajya Sabha member and UP in-charge Sanjay Singh.
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The party’s biggest bet is in Punjab, where it is now the major opposition party and is looking at some real opportunities to form the next government. The state is witnessing a multi-cornered fight with the Akali-BSP, Congress, Akali-BJP’s Amarinder Singh-Dhindsa faction and other players of the recently formed United Samaj Morcha.
Presently, Kejriwal is on a three-day visit to Punjab, with the party rapidly capitalizing on AAP’s stellar debut performance in the Chandigarh civic polls and deepening the party’s ties with the people. The results of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation elections have recently created an AAP wave across Punjab, a smiling Kejriwal said in Chandigarh, before administering oath to the newly elected councilors that they would remain true to the party and the people who voted for them. AAP has 14 corporators, BJP 12, Congress 8 and Akali 1, and so who will hold power in Chandigarh Municipality is still open. But Chandigarh’s results are extremely important for AAP as it is urban and Hindu-dominated, the exact same demographic where the party won a nearly vacant seat in its first assembly elections in 2017.
AAP leader Atishi believes that the results of the Chandigarh civic body elections may not be seen in Punjab, but it is certainly an indicator of the desire for change. “It is an indicator as Chandigarh is the seat of power of Haryana and Punjab. There is a BJP government in Haryana. There is a Congress government in Punjab. Yet, despite this, the people of Chandigarh have chosen AAP,” he said, adding that if people were angry with the BJP, it is not that they have chosen Congress as an alternative and vote for AAP is a vote for change. Because the party represents a force for change: Governments can work, politicians can be clean. Wherever people think AAP is a viable option, they will vote for it, Atishi said.
AAP is often labeled as the ‘Delhi Party’ by its opponents and hence victory in Chandigarh is crucial. Atishi unequivocally said, “If we had won the municipal elections in Delhi, it would not have mattered so much in the upcoming state elections because after all, it is still within Delhi. While Chandigarh is out, it is a completely different area. AAP contested elections for the first time and got the maximum number of seats and that is a big deal.”
Sanjay Kumar of the Center for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) says the results of the Chandigarh civic polls are not an indicator of what is going to happen in Punjab. He said, ‘But I am not saying that you are not going to perform very well.
In fact, Dr Kumar believes that it is AAP, which is now at the forefront and is at a distance from forming the next government in Punjab. “I am going by the ground report. The Akalis have not been able to clear their image, have not been able to fight the battle. I don’t see them in competition. I don’t think any positive opinion is being formed in favor of Akalis. Congress is a divided house. With such a situation within the Congress, I do not see him in a serious electoral contest. Then we have another alliance, with Captain Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress, Dhinda’s SAD and BJP. I don’t see them as a formidable alliance that will give a tough fight to the main contenders, be it the Congress or the AAP. We also have a new formation of farmers. He has also formed a party and will contest elections. So it is going to be a very multi-cornered contest. Looking at this dirty situation, I am going to call it dirty because voters are going to be really confused… In this dirty situation, voter will have desire for change, i.e. Kuch Toh Badla Hai (Something must change). They will be a little disillusioned with what is happening within the Congress, even when you are a sympathizer of the Congress… what to do, how to vote for them (what should we do, how should we vote for them). All these indicators make me believe that it is you who are at the forefront. And if voters have a strong desire for change, they will certainly look to AAP and not Amarinder Singh or the parties formed by farmers, as they do not see him as a potential player in winning the election. AAP) had done well in the last elections, they are at the forefront of all parameters. I think so, but I am not going to go over what happened in Chandigarh municipal elections.”
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Historically, with only one exception, Punjab has never returned the same party to power in successive elections. The exception was in 2012 when the current Akali-BJP government came back to power. Seasoned political watchers can give an edge to the Aam Aadmi Party, but the party itself is confused about the chief ministerial candidate. Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal has already announced that AAP’s chief ministerial face will be from Punjab and a Sikh. It is expected that the election dates will be announced sometime after the model code of conduct comes into force. However, the Congress may choose not to announce its chief ministerial face, forcing the AAP to go back to the drawing board.
When asked about the difficulty in finding a chief ministerial face for Punjab, Atishi said, “We are in the process. Hopefully, we’ll be able to announce soon… you’re looking for someone who is charismatic that people can connect with, you’re looking for someone who is a strong administrator… There are many features you are looking for. Whether you can find it or not, no one can say for sure. As and when we naturally found people who were the right fit, we announced. Like in Uttarakhand, we made the announcement long back.” Asked if AAP hasn’t ruled out a woman as the potential chief minister’s face for Punjab, Atishi said, “It is possible. We haven’t ruled it out.”
As far as Goa is concerned, AAP sees it as a direct contest with the BJP, especially as 15 of the 17 Congress MLAs have quit the party, most of whom have joined the BJP. Atishi said, “The Congress is dying its own death in Goa.” The party has ruled out any pre-poll alliance with TMC or MGP, but is ready for a post-poll alliance. AAP has also announced that the chief ministerial face will be from the Bhandari community while the deputy CM face will be from the Catholic community.
Sanjay Kumar of CSDS believes that BJP is at the fore in Goa as defections in smaller states cause more damage to the party than larger states. However, he believes that Congress will be the number two party. Speaking about Goa, he said, “It is very messy, very fragmented. I think this division of votes will benefit BJP. In states where votes are divided against BJP, it seems to be beneficial.” And also see the mood: A large number of Congress MLAs have joined the BJP. Trinamool Congress is in the fray, AAP is in the fray, so anti-BJP votes are being divided.” In Uttarakhand, Kumar says that AAP will spoil the game on a large number of seats.
While Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is scheduled to hold a rally in Lucknow on January 2, party insiders are quite realistic about his prospects in Uttar Pradesh. The alliance talks with the Samajwadi Party have proved dead. AAP has decided to contest all the seats on its own but is focusing on only a few.
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AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal is clearly projecting himself as an alternative on the national stage. The party is trying to blast the BJP’s ideological fortress as well as in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s stronghold Gujarat. When the BJP had just two MPs in Parliament, it targeted the oldest party, the INC, on charges of pseudo-secularism. And now the new kid on the block, AAP, with just 4 MPs in Parliament, is making allegations against the BJP as “false or pseudo-Hinduism”.
AAP’s thumping of this note is so sharp that it seems that it is trying to convey that it is also not Hindu-centric and may provide a safe house for voters who are attracted to the BJP, But that AAP is the only true supporter of Hindutva. While the distinction between ‘Hinduism’ and ‘Hindutva’ has been lost in this ruckus, Kejriwal also leaves no opportunity to underline the need for respect for all religions and equal space for all in the constitutional framework.
2022 will be a year of expansion for you. Atishi says AAP has shown a model which works and now wants to take this model of governance to other parts of the country also. And the biggest hope for 2022 is to have governments in at least two states outside Delhi. CSDS’s Sanjay Kumar says without getting into the technicalities of actually forming a national party, says that compared to other regional parties, the AAP will make a bigger claim for expansion at the national level, as it is the only party that is in power. . very strong in one state and another; There is no other regional party which is stronger in the two states.
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