In a major jolt to the Opposition unity just couple of days before the Mumbai meeting of India bloc, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has again played a `spoilsport’ and now in Bihar by announcing its electoral foray in the State which would go to polls in 2025 a year after the Lok Sabha polls.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal led AAP has already irked Congress by preparing to dent voting percentage in the poll bound States of Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan both ruled by Congress and also Madhya Pradesh where the grand old party emerged victorious in the last assembly polls. .
Sources close to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said that as of now the senior JDU leader is not miffed up with the AAP’s move as his entire focus in on the two days Opposition meeting at Mumbai, his deputy in the Bihar government RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav is to discuss the AAP’s `venture kind’ of politics which may be damaging to only the Opposition members.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak said that his party is making the organisation strong in the State of Bihar, but will fight Lok Sabha polls under the banner of the India coalition.
Though Pathak added that further strategies for the Lok Sabha polls will be discussed in the Opposition’s alliance meeting in Mumbai.
Reacting to AAP’s statement RJD MP Manoj Jha said when the foundation of the India alliance was being laid down some principles were formed which needs to be kept in mind.
“There was a detailed talk held about these principles. Keeping aside this statement, I think they (AAP) will adhere to those principles.”
Interestingly, when Congress was reluctant to take on board AAP in the Opposition India bloc then it was Nitish Kumar and his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee who convinced Congress to include Kejriwal in the making of India bloc at Patna followed by Bengaluru.
The AAP had attended both the meetings and has announced to participate in the third but a couple of political parties including Congress, Uddhav Thackeray led Shiv Sena now feels that Kejriwal’s move could be intentional..
“This is a deliberate move by AAP just two days before the Mumbai meeting. Bihar elections are next year then what the point to announce it now was. Congress is already watching Kejriwal that has dented the party both in Delhi as well as Punjab and was successful in arm-twisting the Congress to seek support in Parliament to support the Delhi s services Bill,” said a senior Congress leader.
Ironically, Home minister Amit Shah had in a way predicted the development earlier this month in Parliament. While the Delhi Services Bill was passed with NDA receiving support from neutral parties such as the BJD and YSR Congress, Amit Shah had observed in his speech, “I want to tell Congress that after this bill (on Delhi services) is passed, they (AAP) are not going to enter into any alliance with you”.
Kejriwal had threatened to back out of the second meeting of the united Opposition that was held in Bengaluru last month if the Congress did not promise to oppose the Bill in the Upper House.