Delhi Assembly Polls & ‘Dirty Politics’

As the election battle intensified in Delhi, Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal and his team is yet again committing mistakes after mistakes, which may cost them dear in the battle for survival. Yes, it is ‘now or never’ battle for the Aam Aadmi Party, which has been under attack from BJP President Amit Shah, who believes in planning his moves meticulously. Amit Shah is on a mission to finish the regional parties that do not fall in line. And, perhaps, AAP is high on his agenda. Can AAP survive this biggest scare? It’s very unlikely, as they are falling into the trap laid by Modi & Shah.

Kejriwal, who claimed to have been on a mission to provide clean, corruption-free and effective government in Delhi, seems to have lost the track. The ‘hit-and-run’ leader, as claimed by the critics, has been getting personal with his friend-turned-foe Kiran Bedi, who has refused to say a single word against him. From challenging Bedi to a public debate to attacking her personally by calling her a ‘BJP Agent’ in IAC Movement, Kejriwal & Team are losing the moral high ground thick and fast.

Kejriwal sought to impose Jagdish Mukhi on BJP as its Chief Ministerial candidate, while the saffron party tried to seek votes in the name of Narendra Modi. Kejriwal did not stop here. He set a dangerous precedent to mislead the public, by posting posters on auto-rickshaws on Delhi roads, which asked people who did they prefer as their CM – Kejriwal or Jagdish Mukhi? This kind of politics was never seen in India. When asked why he did that, he retorted, “if not Mukhi, who else could be BJP’s CM candidate”.

A few days later, he got the “information” from sources that Satish Upadhyay could be BJP’s CM candidate. He did not waste time and addressed a press meet to question the BJP State Unit President’s credentials and brought a series of allegations against him without any strong evidences. His ‘social media cell’, which has a strong presence on the Web, continued to level allegations and propaganda.

The masterstroke played by the BJP by bringing Kiran Bedi and declaring her as the CM candidate, completely put the AAP on back foot. They were taken aback by this unprecedented development. Now, Kejriwal got a match, a strong counter. While his team continued to attack Kiran Bedi, questioning her decision to join the BJP and calling her a ‘mole’, ‘opportunist’ etc, Kejriwal stuck to the debate issue. He avoided Ajay Maken and Nupur Sharma’s challenge, but continued to dare Kiran Bedi to put her on defensive.

When Kiran Bedi refused to respond to AAP or its leaders personally and continued to work on her mission, Kejriwal resorted to the last tactics. He put posters on auto-rickshaws again. But, the poster was changed. Instead of Mukhi, it carried the poster of Kiran Bedi. The posters called Kejriwal ‘honest’ and Kiran Bedi ‘opportunistic’ and asked the voters of Delhi to decide. Will it work for Kejriwal? It shows the real desperation of AAP, which has become restless following Kiran Bedi’s entry into Delhi Politics.

Kiran Bedi is gaining popularity among the masses, including women, not just because of her clean image, administration and honesty, but also because of her refusal to fall into the trap of dirty politics and mud-slinging. But, a honest and serious person like Arvind Kejriwal is unable to understand it. He must not forget that whenever there is a personal attack, it makes rivals emerge stronger and play the ‘victim card’. Yes, this is happening in Delhi today. Such attacks benefited Sonia Gandhi (2004), Dr. Manmohan Singh (2009) and Narendra Modi (All Time). If Kejriwal & Team continued to launch the tirade against Kiran Bedi, it may back-fire for them.

BJP did not have a face in Delhi to match the personality of Arvind Kejriwal. All were tried and tested. But, with Kiran Bedi at the helm of affairs, the party is upbeat despite some internal differences, which were negated by the outbursts of Shanti Bhushan and Prashant Bhushan against Kejriwal. It’s high time Kejriwal & Team stop targeting individuals or resort to personal attacks and rather focus on real issues that will grab the attention of people in Delhi.