The AAM AADMI Party (AAP) suffered a major shock in Delhi while the voters rejected it after a decade of power. The overwhelming defeat has become more bitter with the radiation of the main party leaders, including the leader of the AAP and former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and the former assistant CM Manish Sisodia.
For the AAP, the loss of Delhi could have a training effect, with the political future of Kejriwal at stake. All eyes are also on Punjab, the only state where the AAP is now in power. But why?
Let’s take a look.
What Delhi’s loss means for Arvind Kejriwal
The AAP was reduced to only 22 out of 70 seats in Delhi compared to 62 in 2020. But its 43.57% voting share is only 1.99% behind the Bharatiya Janata (BJP) party.
Not only did the AAP lost Delhi against the saffron party, but its chief Kejriwal has not kept its seat either. The Supremo AAP was defeated by the Verma Parove of the BJP by a margin of 4,089 votes.
Sisodia, Sarabh Bharadwaj, Satyendar Jain and Somnath Bharti were among the other Bigwigs AAP beaten by the BJP.
For Kejriwal, the election of the Delhi Assembly was not only a political but personal battle. This is the first time that Kejriwal has lost the New Delhi elections after his first victory against the CM of Delhi then Sheila Dikshit of Congress in 2013.
The leader of the AAP, whose party reached power in Delhi for the first time in 2013 on an anti-corruption board, faced accusations of corruption. Kejriwal spent six months in prison last year as part of an alleged scam of the excise policy.
He has been released on bail since September 2024. In January of this year, the Ministry of the Interior of the Union granted a sanction to the Directorate of the Application of Laws (ED) to prosecute Kejriwal by virtue of the Anti Act Anti law -Blanching in the Delhi alcohol policy case. The CBI also proves the case.
According to lawyer for the Supreme Court Nipun Saxena, the minimum prison sentence in the money laundering case is seven years if she is found guilty, said CNBC TV18. If Kejriwal had won the headquarters of New Delhi and found guilty in this case, he would have been disqualified from the function of the representation of the 1951 population.
Now he would be treated as a common citizen and will be confronted with the legal process. A FIR was filed against the AAP chief in Kurukshetra recently for his remarks on the alleged “poisoning” of the Yamuna river water by the government of Haryana.
A victory for Kejriwal would have reaffirmed his popularity and shown that Delhi’s voters had sympathy for him in the midst of his legal problems.
The rout of the AAP and the defeat of Kejriwal also harmed the personal mark of the chief of the AAP. Kejriwal, who harassed the party’s “clean policy”, was mired by allegations of corruption and the controversy “Sheesh Mahal”.
The BJP tried to wedge the AAP on the costly renovation of the chief minister’s residence when Kejriwal was in office, referring to Sheesh Mahal.
For Kejriwal, who designed his image as a political leader rejecting opulence, this controversy was apparently perceived by Delhi voters as a “symbol of hypocrisy”, according to a Moneycontrol report.
Before resigning from Delhi CM after his surety last September, Kejriwal had declared that he would not return to the CM chair until he obtained the mandate of the people as “his honesty certificate” , calling it “Agnipariksha».
The AAP chief lost this trial by fire. The victory at Delhi would have been softer because the AAP would have returned to power in the national capital for a fourth consecutive term. With that, Kejriwal would have become the only opposition leader after 2014 to defeat the BJP three times in a row.
Conceded to defeat, Kejriwal promised to play the role of constructive opposition. “We have done a lot of work in the past decade … We have improved, we have worked a lot on improving the availability of water and infrastructure … But we will not give up … we will not be Not just a constructive opposition, but we will also do social work and help people with our personal capacities. We did not enter into politics for power, we came to serve the people, “he said during his first reaction after the results of the Delhi elections.
– Arvind Kejriwal (@arvindkejriwal) February 8, 2025
Why Spotlight is on punjab
The loss of the AAP put the spotlight on the Punjab. Kejriwal’s party should now focus on maintaining its herd.
AAP leaders admit that Delhi’s defeat could have repercussions in Punjab, where the party government is led by CM Bhagwant Mann.
“The AAP has big ticket projects similar to Delhi and Punjab, such as free power and Mohalla Clinics. The popularity of Kejriwal in Delhi had created a similar effect in Punjab. It is after the Victories of the AAP in Delhi that the Punjab electorate voted for the AAP during the elections of the 2022 assembly. head of the PUAP in Punjab Indian Express.
Punjab leaders believe that Kejriwal would now focus on the state, which will go to the polls in two years. We fear that it can create a discord between him and Mann.
The Punjab Congress felt an opportunity in Delhi de l’Aap’s rout, speculation increasing on an internal revolt in the Kejriwal party and a possibility of mid-term elections.
The leader of the Partap Singh Bajwa Congress even claimed Indian Express That Kejriwal would now head to Punjab “to become CM of the State”, predicting a power struggle between the chief of the AAP and CM Mann. “There may be widespread defections among AAP deputies in Punjab,” said Bajwa.
The BJP also believes that the Dubbing of the AAP in Delhi will have an impact on the Punjab and plans to increase its awareness of voters.
AAP sources have told the newspaper that senior management would focus more on Punjab, as well as other states – with the national ambitions of the party always on the right track. “Everything is not lost. We are still a national party and head a government in Punjab with a more than comfortable majority. The loss in Delhi is an opportunity to develop in other states and consolidate our posts there, “said a senior manager Indian Express.
With agency entries
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