Finally, the most debated topic about the political battle in Delhi comes to an on Tuesday. Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Admi Party retains itself for the third consecutive term in the national capital. Article 370, Ram Mandir and Shaheen Bagh could not swing the Delhi Assembly elections for the Bharathiya Janatha Party (BJP). What could be the reason behind AAP emerging victorious, almost repeating its 2015 performance? Let us see.
Where did BJP go wrong?
But before we talk about Aam Admi’s success, it is important to learn what went wrong with the BJP.
The hatred politics
Since the election commission announced the voting day, BJP stood strong on the ground to become a powerful contender to Arvind Kejriwal’s party. The only success mantra the saffron party followed was the hatred strikes. They mentioned Kejriwal as a terrorist and even an anti-Hindu personality. BJP did not have a counter-strategy to offset AAP’s role in Delhi. Altogether, the state’s party lead by Manoj Tiwari spread communal and hateful speech for Hindu vote strengthening.
Bringing national issues into a state
The issues like Ram Mandir, Article 370, Triple Talaq and pro-CAA were overused throughout the poll campaign. Maybe the ruling party in the center forgot the fact that state elections are not about national issues but local matters.
Fail to put up a local face
People wanted to see a local face who inspires everyone, but the BJP failed to do so. Overdependence on Narendra Modi as the election charm did not work. Everyone comprehended that the best Delhi will get would be a puppet as the CM if BJP wins. On the other hand, Kejriwal is a Big Local Brand in Delhi and without having any local brand against him was wrong progress.
Reasons why Arvind Kejriwal remained Delhi King
Arvind Kejriwal who proved to be the king of Delhi politics and his policies projected local issues of the state rather than playing religion politics. That was not it, AAP shifted its poll campaign focus on its major strengths, particularly in the field of education, health, and women empowerment.
Freebies
Free bus fare, free electricity, and free water, provided by the AAP government since 2013 and 15, proved to be a game-changer yet again in 2020. The lower class family in Delhi felt obliged to AAP and returned in votes.
Women safety
Eying women safety in the state, the Kejriwal govt was successful to impress the female voters in Delhi. The government installed 3 lakh CCTV cameras and 2 lakh streetlights across the city, deployed 13,000 bus marshals and administration of pledge to boy students of all schools to behave well with girls.
Going soft with Hindutva
Playing a soft Hindutva strategy also gave AAP an upper hand amongst the rest. The reciting of Hanuman Chalisa by Arvind Kejriwal was an innovation by AAP. The move literally neutralized the BJP’s attempt to polarise voters on communal lines
Moreover, the saffron party kept bothering Arvind Kejriwal over Shaheen Bagh row, but he avoided getting dragged into the debate on anti-CAA protests. Despite harsh provocation, AAP leaders did not visit Shaheen Bagh and evaded being portrayed as a pro-Muslim party. This was a move that helped them grab away BJP’s voters.
Intrestingly, Aam Aadmi Party’s won New Delhi’s Okhla seat, which houses Shaheen Bagh and Jamia Nagar.
Remaining calm over BJP attacks
In a series of attacks from BJP, from calling him a terrorist to an anti-Hindu character, Kejriwal remained neutral. He did not engage with Modi, attack him or get depressed by the BJP’s attempt to claim sole rights on nationalism.
Kejriwal tried to pitch himself through positive campaigning. Instead of criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi like what Congress did, Kejriwal focused on his own government’s achievements.
