Delhi landslide raises hopes of AAP cadres

The Victory of Aam Aadmi Party is now part of history. Arvind Kejriwal who came to be known as maverick was written off politically, but he bounced back with thumping majority giving a massive blow to the Modi juggernaut. But the real litmus test for ‘Kejriwal Paanch Saal’ begins now. It remains to be seen how the party would move forward politically and what would be its impact on the politics of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. According to AAP Telangana unit, the party central leadership should make some quick moves and take a decision on contesting the GHMC elections. The party activists, who had gone into near hibernation, exude confidence that they would be able to make their mark in the GHMC elections, though it may not be possible to replicate the success that was seen in Delhi.

AAP here does not have a leader who can take the party forward and take on the TRS which continues to be the dominant force though of late there have been some dissensions within the party rank and file under GHMC limits. Telagana State being a new state, people still are looking towards TRS with hope and it may not be so easy to cause any major dent in the fortunes of the pink party which would be contesting the GHMC elections in alliance with MIM.

According to TRS leadership, the situation is different here. In TS, the aspirations of people are very high and they have pinned their hopes on KCR. The manner in which the new government has been taking decisions – whether it be the PRC, or Mission Kakatiya, Aasara and other welfare schemes – there is no scope for any other party to make political inroads. The TRS, according to a senior party leader, is making all-out efforts to establish itself as a major force in GHMC and other local body elections that would be held soon. At least at this point of time, TRS rules out the possibility of having any association with AAP.

The situation in Andhra Pradesh appears to be little different. Even before AAP’s prowess was proved in Delhi, AAP activists despite their negligible presence mobilised social activists and legal experts against land pooling. The Delhi results have given a new lease of life to the fledgling AAP in AP. AAP wants to start resurrection of the party from Vijayawada taking up issues like land pooling and other promises which TDP is yet to fulfill. The party state convener B Ramakrishna Raju says that AAP in AP needs to be cleansed first. AAP has many gaps and is ridden with infighting and has no leadership that can galvanise the party, he adds. The party central leadership is also yet take a decision on whether AAP should join hands with other parties like YSRCP in launching agitations against TDP or not. The TDP which feels that Kejriwal’s stupendous victory shows how dynamic the Indian democracy is says that it should be a lesson to all political parties. A senior AP minister feels that AAP is no threat to TDP in AP. He feels that it is too premature to say if AAP will emerge as a force in the state or not. It does not have any leader who can galvanise the party. It has no cadre and even in urban areas, its presence is very negligible. Politics is a dynamic situation. “Let’s wait and watch,” the senior minister said.

By: V Ramu Sarma