AAP and Congress: The recent ordinance brought by the Modi government on the transfer and posting of officers in Delhi forced the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to compromise on its earlier stand that it would never partner with the Congress. .
The Aam Aadmi Party on Monday sought the support of all non-BJP parties in the Rajya Sabha to defeat a bill to replace the Centre’s ordinance on Delhi’s service matter, saying it was a “time of trial by fire” for the opposition parties. is, and they should come together if they want to save the country’s democracy and constitution.
The AAP’s appeal to opposition parties comes ahead of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plan to reach out to all of them, which began in Kolkata on Tuesday with his West Bengal counterpart and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee. According to AAP, Kejriwal will travel to Mumbai to meet Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar on Wednesday and Thursday respectively.
Congress and AAP
AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP and national spokesperson Sanjay Singh said the Congress will also have to decide whether it is for or against India’s democracy and federal structure.
Nitish Kumar Factor
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who along with his deputy Tejashwi Yadav met Kejriwal at his residence on Sunday, is a key factor in bringing the two warring parties – AAP and Congress – closer.
Kumar met Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on Monday. He may have convinced the Congress leadership to support AAP on the ordinance. Hours after their meeting, there was a strong buzz in political circles that the Congress had decided to support Kejriwal’s party. If it happens, it will be one of the miracles of Indian politics as AAP has emerged from anti-Congress protests. It was Kejriwal and his allies who launched anti-Congress protests in the national capital during the Sheila Daksh era, which turned into a movement and changed the political landscape drastically. After forming the AAP on 26 November 2012, Kejriwal declared his political war against the Congress, which resulted in the complete ouster of the Congress from the national capital. Today, the Grand Old Party has zero presence in the Delhi Assembly. AAP has completely captured the Congress vote bank in the UT. It was the presence of AAP because of which the Congress failed to send even a single member to Parliament from Delhi. Not only Delhi, Congress also lost Punjab to AAP.
Kejriwal supported Rahul
In the midst of a bitter political battle between the AAP and the Congress in several states, after Rahul Gandhi was disqualified from Parliament over his remarks on the ‘Modi surname issue’, Kejriwal in an unexpected move supported the Congress leader. .
Till a few days back, even after meeting Nitish Kumar, Kejriwal had not indicated any compromise on his stand against the Congress, but the Centre’s ordinance came as a bridge between AAP and the Congress. If the AAP wants to defeat the BJP on the ordinance, it needs the support of the Congress.
What if there is friendship between AAP and Congress?
If Congress and AAP become friends, one of the three hurdles to the far-fetched dream of weaving a broad anti-BJP front in 2024 will be removed. After AAP, TMC and BRS are the other two biggest hurdles in the way of forming a united opposition. TMC has already shown flexibility by saying that it can extend support to Congress with certain conditions. BRS is the only major opposition party which is still silent on united opposition.
Impact on Delhi and Punjab
As of now, AAP’s electoral presence in Delhi and Punjab is formidable. However, the AAP did not win a single Lok Sabha seat in the national capital as the anti-BJP vote got split between Kejriwal’s party and the Congress. If you and Congress are deadlocked on seat sharing in Delhi, you can open your account in Delhi and Congress can also have MP/MP in the national capital. The Congress had to face defeat in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Delhi, so did the AAP. Their partnership can change the political equation of Delhi. It is a must win game for AAP and Congress in view of the Lok Sabha elections.
Similarly, Punjab is another bone of contention between the two. Recently, AAP created history by wresting power from Congress in Punjab. Also, AAP candidate Sushil Rinku won the Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll, who was a Congress leader and joined Kejriwal’s party before the election. So if Congress compromises with Delhi and Punjab then a new chapter of politics can be seen in national politics.
recent surprises in politics
To many, it was unbelievable when RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and JD-U chief Nitish Kumar, who were arch-rivals in Bihar, agreed to patch up their differences. In 2015, the two stalwarts of Bihar formed a ‘Mahagathbandhan’ to stop the Narendra Modi-Ami Shah winning streak. And this formula worked in Bihar. Taking inspiration from Lalu-Nitish, Akhilesh Yadav led Samajwadi Party and Mayawati led Bahujan Samaj Party – two warring parties in UP formed an alliance in Uttar Pradesh ahead of Lok Sabha Elections 2019. However, it did not work in UP. Uttar Pradesh
If AAP and Congress form an alliance, it will be a big blow to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. The pairing could spell trouble for the BJP in at least two states – Delhi and Punjab, which together send 20 representatives (7+13) to the Lok Sabha. For the Congress and the AAP, it will be a no loss deal as far as the Lok Sabha polls in Delhi are concerned as both stand at zero in the national capital.