Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal may finally be budging on his position of not reaching out to other political leaders.
After publicly endorsing Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar in the run-up to last month’s Bihar assembly election, Kejriwal will now stand in solidarity with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who will seek a second term next year.
The Aam Aadmi Party leader will accompany the Trinamool Congress chief to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s daughter’s wedding reception in New Delhi on Wednesday. He is also expected to meet Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav during the course of the week.
Kejriwal and Banerjee have made a public appearance together in the past. However, their presence at Jaitley’s residence is a proverbial case of waving a red rag to a bull, as both Kejriwal and Banerjee have a bitter personal relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Kejriwal single-handedly humbled the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Delhi assembly election earlier this year, limiting the saffron party to just three seats in the 70-member assembly.
Banerjee has a separate agenda. Under pressure from the Union government in the Saradha scam involving her ministers, the West Bengal chief minister wants to prove to the BJP that she is not friendless. She is using Kejriwal’s credibility to bolster her reputation, even though she is on a strong wicket in West Bengal. The BJP has been trying hard to establish a presence in Banerjee’s territory, but this task has become more difficult after its recent drubbing in Bihar.
Sense of reluctance
For Kejriwal, the appearance with Banerjee is also about shedding his reclusive image. His colleagues in the Aam Aadmi party have been urging him to build bridges with other non-Bharatiya Janata Party leaders. The Delhi chief minister can use this outreach to acquire a national profile as he prepares to play a larger political role in the coming years.
For now, though, Kejriwal has said that he will not join any new political grouping of opposition leaders and chief ministers. While Kejriwal realises he will need friends to fulfil his national ambitions, he is held back by his moral stance that the Aam Aadmi Party will stand on its own because he believes that all other political parties are tainted.
Kejriwal was heavily criticised after being photographed hugging Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav at Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s swearing-in ceremony in Patna. Kejriwal was accused of political opportunism and hypocrisy because he had attacked Lalu Prasad Yadav after the former Bihar chief minister was convicted in 2013 for his role in the fodder scam. After the incident last month, the Delhi chief minister subsequently took great pains to explain that it was Yadav who had initiated the hug.
Kejriwal found himself in a similar predicament after being invited to a tea party organised at Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar’s residence in August. At the event, several opposition leaders including Mamata Banerjee and Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav had floated the idea of forming a non-BJP, non-Congress front. The Delhi chief minister stayed away from the gathering as he had earlier publicly criticised Pawar and demanded a Special Investigation Team probe against the NCP chief. Kejriwal had then held a separate meeting with Banerjee.
Although Kejriwal will not shy away from meeting select opposition leaders in the coming days to dispel the notion that he favours political isolation, his party will continue making its political moves independently.
Eye on Punjab
Kejriwal has also set his sights on next year’s assembly election in Punjab, where is a groundswell of support for the Aam Aadmi Party. The fledgling party sprung a surprise by winning four seats in the state in the 2014 Lok Sabha election.
Party insiders say internal surveys show the AAP has a good chance of wresting power from the Akali Dal-BJP government in Punjab, which has to contend with anti-incumbency. The Congress used to be the only alternative in Punjab, but AAP has provided an option to voters increasingly disillusioned with the traditional political class.
Despite the optimism, AAP leaders feel their task has become more difficult after former chief minister Amarinder Singh recently returned as chief of the Congress’ Punjab unit.
His projection as the chief ministerial candidate has enthused party workers and the electorate, who believe he is the only leader who can take on the Akalis. “Our battle is not against the Congress but against Amarinder Singh,” remarked a senior AAP leader.
Not only does the AAP have to contend with Amarinder Singh’s strong political persona, but it could also be hampered by the absence of a recognisable chief ministerial candidate. The BJP had the same problem in the Bihar election. AAP leaders, however, insist that this will not be a handicap as the people of Punjab are ready to give them a chance.
The party’s performance in Punjab will decide Kejriwal’s future political moves. If it does well, the Aam Aadmi Party will be encouraged to spread its wings to other states, or else it will have to rework its future strategy.
After publicly endorsing Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar in the run-up to last month’s Bihar assembly election, Kejriwal will now stand in solidarity with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who will seek a second term next year.
The Aam Aadmi Party leader will accompany the Trinamool Congress chief to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s daughter’s wedding reception in New Delhi on Wednesday. He is also expected to meet Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav during the course of the week.
Kejriwal and Banerjee have made a public appearance together in the past. However, their presence at Jaitley’s residence is a proverbial case of waving a red rag to a bull, as both Kejriwal and Banerjee have a bitter personal relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Kejriwal single-handedly humbled the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Delhi assembly election earlier this year, limiting the saffron party to just three seats in the 70-member assembly.
Banerjee has a separate agenda. Under pressure from the Union government in the Saradha scam involving her ministers, the West Bengal chief minister wants to prove to the BJP that she is not friendless. She is using Kejriwal’s credibility to bolster her reputation, even though she is on a strong wicket in West Bengal. The BJP has been trying hard to establish a presence in Banerjee’s territory, but this task has become more difficult after its recent drubbing in Bihar.
Sense of reluctance
For Kejriwal, the appearance with Banerjee is also about shedding his reclusive image. His colleagues in the Aam Aadmi party have been urging him to build bridges with other non-Bharatiya Janata Party leaders. The Delhi chief minister can use this outreach to acquire a national profile as he prepares to play a larger political role in the coming years.
For now, though, Kejriwal has said that he will not join any new political grouping of opposition leaders and chief ministers. While Kejriwal realises he will need friends to fulfil his national ambitions, he is held back by his moral stance that the Aam Aadmi Party will stand on its own because he believes that all other political parties are tainted.
Kejriwal was heavily criticised after being photographed hugging Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav at Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar’s swearing-in ceremony in Patna. Kejriwal was accused of political opportunism and hypocrisy because he had attacked Lalu Prasad Yadav after the former Bihar chief minister was convicted in 2013 for his role in the fodder scam. After the incident last month, the Delhi chief minister subsequently took great pains to explain that it was Yadav who had initiated the hug.
Kejriwal found himself in a similar predicament after being invited to a tea party organised at Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar’s residence in August. At the event, several opposition leaders including Mamata Banerjee and Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav had floated the idea of forming a non-BJP, non-Congress front. The Delhi chief minister stayed away from the gathering as he had earlier publicly criticised Pawar and demanded a Special Investigation Team probe against the NCP chief. Kejriwal had then held a separate meeting with Banerjee.
Although Kejriwal will not shy away from meeting select opposition leaders in the coming days to dispel the notion that he favours political isolation, his party will continue making its political moves independently.
Eye on Punjab
Kejriwal has also set his sights on next year’s assembly election in Punjab, where is a groundswell of support for the Aam Aadmi Party. The fledgling party sprung a surprise by winning four seats in the state in the 2014 Lok Sabha election.
Party insiders say internal surveys show the AAP has a good chance of wresting power from the Akali Dal-BJP government in Punjab, which has to contend with anti-incumbency. The Congress used to be the only alternative in Punjab, but AAP has provided an option to voters increasingly disillusioned with the traditional political class.
Despite the optimism, AAP leaders feel their task has become more difficult after former chief minister Amarinder Singh recently returned as chief of the Congress’ Punjab unit.
His projection as the chief ministerial candidate has enthused party workers and the electorate, who believe he is the only leader who can take on the Akalis. “Our battle is not against the Congress but against Amarinder Singh,” remarked a senior AAP leader.
Not only does the AAP have to contend with Amarinder Singh’s strong political persona, but it could also be hampered by the absence of a recognisable chief ministerial candidate. The BJP had the same problem in the Bihar election. AAP leaders, however, insist that this will not be a handicap as the people of Punjab are ready to give them a chance.
The party’s performance in Punjab will decide Kejriwal’s future political moves. If it does well, the Aam Aadmi Party will be encouraged to spread its wings to other states, or else it will have to rework its future strategy.
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