Ritesh K Srivastava
While many believe that the upcoming 2014 General Elections will be dominated by a clash between two titans – Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi – one man who has been desperately trying to change this perception and convert the Lok Sabha polls into a battle between him and the Gujarat Chief Minister is Arvind Kejriwal.
Having stumped his political rivals in the 2013 assembly elections in Delhi, this former RTI activist and anti-corruption crusader is unarguably the most talked about in national politics today. Having electorally conquered and ruled the national capital just a few months after floating his political outfit ‘Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’, Kejriwal has now set his eyes on the crucial Lok Sabha polls and aims to play a kingmaker at the national level.
Kejriwal’s AAP, an offshoot of Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption campaign, came out with flying colors in the 2013 Delhi Elections, bagging 27 seats. However, the party has since faced severe criticism over its actions and decisions on many issues, especially for taking outside support from the Congress.
While serving as Delhi’s seventh CM, Kejriwal took some path-breaking decisions like free supply of 700 litres of water and slashing the existing power tariffs by 50% - a promise made in the AAP manifesto – but also faced flak for overplaying the ‘common man’ card and resorting to public posturing.
Despite his party’s ‘public referendum drama’ and flip-flops over issues like the midnight raid, the Jan Lokpal Bill, and the most recent, the media-fixing row, Kejriwal has managed to strike an emotional chord with the country’s disgruntled middle class as he tried to project AAP as a credible alternative to the Congress and the BJP.
This former IIT (Kharagpur) alumnus worked towards making the common man believe that “big change begins with small things" and sought their support for his mission to make India corruption-free through the political route – by contesting elections.
Owing to a slow response fom Centre to Anna Hazare’s Lokpal campaign, Kejriwal decided to take the battle forward by entering politics. His move, however, triggered a bitter split in India Against Corruption brigade and when Anna did not welcome his decision, he parted ways with his mentor. Despite criticism that he ditched his mentor Anna Hazare and used his name to harbor his political ambitions, Kejriwal floated AAP in November 2012.
AAP ‘s spectacular success in Delhi Assembly polls made Kejriwal a household name and the development was seen as a event of tectonic intensity in Indian politics.
The Kejriwal government finally quit on February 14 as the Opposition blocked its move to table the Jan Lokpal Bill without prior approval from the Centre. After quitting as CM, Kejriwal was labeled as an ‘escapist’ and his party’s announcement to contest the Lok Sabha polls in all major states was taken as ‘political opportunism.’
Was AAP’s victory in Delhi a mere flash in the pan or whether Kejriwal’s magic will continue in the Lok Sabha polls, only time will tell. The party is banking heavily on states like Haryana, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh where people’s anger towards main stream parties exists due to corruption and red tapism. Though party’s stance on the midnight raid and the Jan Lokpal Bill has backfired, the APP leadership is hopeful that it can still play the corruption card.
There is no doubt that the middle class – the AAP’s biggest strength - is disillusioned at the moment and its support to the party has also dwindled but it remains to be seen whether it has a bearing on the party`s prospects in the Lok Sabha polls.
With its populist schemes such as free water, cheap electricity and its propensity to take on the Delhi Police, AAP’s bigger game plan is to mobilise support of the lower and urban middle class sections.
The party has renewed attack on its rivals by raising issues of corruption, criminalisation of politics and crony capitalism and claimed that only AAP can be a better alternative to the BJP and the Congress. How well the party disseminates its message will be crucial for its prospects in UP, Bihar, Maharashtra, Haryana etc.
Since its inception, the party has also faced rebellion from some of its founding members like Vinod Kumar Binny, and many have left the party due to autocratic functioning of Kejriwal. Confident of upsetting the poll arithmetic, AAP has given ticket to several well-known faces from all sections of the society but the likelihood of their victory remains to be seen.
Many political experts believe that it will be difficult for the party to replicate its Delhi success in other parts of north India unless a magical spell is created in its favour before the polls. Kejriwal is by far the biggest face of the party and most of its leaders had joined the party considering AAP`s growing popularity among the common man. The party badly needs more charismatic leaders to widen its reach beyond Delhi.
Despite being media-savvy, Kejriwal`s biggest drawbacks has been his lack of a national outlook, his failure to offer a concrete road-map to tackle complex national and international issues. He has always attacked his political opponents over wrongdoings but he has himself come under EC scanner over his party`s dubious fund raising.
From some accuse the AAP of being called as the B-Team of Congress, others accuse him of having a secret deal with the BJP.
Kejriwal doesn`t see the role of PM for himself but can play a spoilsport in Narendra Modi’s march to Delhi, thus leaving ample scope for political bargaining with Congress in the event of a fractured mandate after polls. After initially saying no to contesting the Lok Sabha polls, Kejriwal has announced to challenge Narendra Modi in the Varanasi constituency.
