As Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi battle it out in Gujarat, one man missing from the action is Arvind Kejriwal whose Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is also contesting the election.
AAP has so far released two lists for the Gujarat Assembly election and named a total of 20 candidates. While the party may release more names in the days to come, it may not contest on all the 182 Assembly constituencies in the state.
The seats on which AAP is contesting are Bapunagar, Unjha, Rajkot (West), Danilimda, Lathi, Chhota Udepur, Padra, Karjan, Pardi, Gondal, Kamrej, Gandhinagar (North), Botad, Katargam, Rajkot (East), Surat (East), Karanj, Palanpur, Gandhidham and Jamnagar (Rural).
FLIP-FLOP ON CONTESTING GUJARAT
The party, led by Arvind Kejriwal, which initially had plans to go all out in Gujarat and take on the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah combine on their home turf, seems to be almost missing in action.
Following its no-show in Goa and below expectation performance in Punjab and the drubbing in the MCD polls, AAP was divided on whether it should, at all, contest Gujarat election, with many saying that the party may drop the idea.
AAP, however, now seems to be fighting only on selected seats where the party feels the BJP’s popularity is on the wane.
AAP’s flip-flip on contesting Gujarat election, however, seems to have not gone down well with the party cadre, who were working since the last few years to prepare the ground for the polls.
More than 2,000 volunteers and at least 100 local leaders of AAP recently joined Congress. Some even accused AAP leadership of working as BJP’s B-team.
CONGRESS WARY OF THE B-TEAM
While the jury is still out on whose side AAP is or if it is not on anyone’s side, the label of “B-team” is something that seems to have stuck with Arvind Kejriwal-led party.
Despite its seemingly friendly overtures to Congress in the run-up to the Gujarat election, the Grand Old Party is sceptical about AAP.
Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken recently told Mail Today that AAP has “strategically contested only in states with incumbent BJP governments, taking away the anti-incumbency votes that would have otherwise gone to Congress”.
AAP’s decision to not contest in Himachal Pradesh but in Gujarat has also raised eyebrows.
“Himachal is geographically closer to Delhi than Gujarat… But they chose to contest only in Gujarat and there too, on all the 11 seats where they have announced their candidates, the BJP stands to benefit from it? How else can this be read?” Maken had said after AAP announced its first list for Gujarat election.
FIGHTING THE BJP, SAYS KEJRIWAL
AAP, however, has maintained that it is fighting the BJP in Gujarat.
“If somewhere AAP is winning, then give your vote to AAP. If any other party is winning, give vote to them, but defeat the BJP,” Arvind Kejriwal said during AAP’s national conference marking five years of the party.
“I request the people of Gujarat to give your vote to that candidate or party who can defeat the BJP,” Kejriwal said, accusing BJP of “dividing society on communal lines”.
AAP has also backed Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani who is contesting as an Independent candidate in the Gujarat election. AAP’s support to Mevani, who has been in talks with Congress, seems to be yet another attempt by Kejriwal-led party to posture itself as against BJP rule in Gujarat.
AAP’s ambivalent strategy on Gujarat can go either way–help the party open its account in Gujarat or confuse the voters and make them swing the other side.
Indiatoday
