High-pitched sloganeering by a massive crowd, tall promises, passionate innuendos and moral preaching, it was an action-packed month for Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal as he campaigned across the National Capital.
Kejriwal’s avid apologies for resigning as Chief Minister in 49 days in front of overwhelming crowds along with his rhetoric has won him a million hearts in Delhi. It may have been a strenuous week for the former Chief Minister whose credibility was severely targeted by the rival parties, but with the election just a couple of days away, the on-ground response Kejriwal is getting has kept him going.
Though the AAP has been gearing up for the Assembly elections ever since November with its series of Delhi Dialogues, Kejriwal faced a new challenge when the BJP declared former Indian Against Corruption member Kiran Bedi as its chief ministerial candidate.
However, while on one hand Kejriwal, who is standing from the New Delhi Assembly constituency, had his hands full announcing the party’s blueprint for development in various constituencies and gaining back the confidence of the miffed voters, he also had to tackle the BJP and Bedi’s direct attacks on him.
The AAP intensified its campaign after Bedi’s projection as BJP’s chief ministerial candidate was seen as a masterstroke aimed at making a dent in the AAP’s support base. Now, it was no more about holding Delhi Dialogues, public meetings or door-to-door campaigns, but about protecting its core constituencies and neutralizing the Bedi factor. The party planned flash mobs, street plays, public marches and eventually the mega roadshow of Kejriwal which brought together a huge crowd.
Taking a lead from seasoned politicians Kejriwal also played the blame game and criticized the BJP for several things, with special emphasis on his rivals’ “insensitivity” toward women. He quoted BJP leaders who asked Hindu women to bear four children and those who told women not to wear jeans. He said, “I’ve spoken to women in different places and I’m sure that no woman will vote for the BJP now.”
During these 15 days, Kejriwal also made several promises to the people of Delhi. Whether the party will be able to deliver on these promises remains to be seen, but Kejriwal seemed to successfully connect with the voters. Kejriwal’s way of doing so was personalized as he directly spoke to the people in the crowd and heard their grievances over various issues.
When he spoke of bringing power tariff down, he targeted BJP’s Satish Upadhyay and asked the people how many had faulty meters and said that he would replace them if they voted him to power. In the case of water issues, he gave examples and for corruption he presented methodology to fix it.
At the fag-end of the campaign trail and with only a few hours in their hands, Kejriwal is clearly putting his best foot forward. Standing from the New Delhi Assembly constituency, the AAP chief will be campaigning in the constituency from 10 am to 6 pm on Thursday, on the last day of campaigning.