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The party launched its campaign for Delhi in July and with back-to-back releases of its leaders from jail, more seniors joined the campaign that has become intense over the last few weeks
In September, AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal was released from jail and since then, the party has intensified its campaign. (PTI)
Maharashtra and Jharkhand are all set for elections but the poll ‘josh’ is also high in the national capital, with the city’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) out on the roads and campaigning to form the government for the third time.
The term of the current Delhi assembly will end in February and elections will be held around that time. The poll body is likely to announce elections in January, while Maharashtra and Jharkhand will have elections in the next few days and votes will be counted on November 23.
AAP’s leaders are holding public meetings, door-to-door campaigns and ‘padyatras’ to woo voters. The party launched its campaign for Delhi in July and with back-to-back releases of its leaders from jail, more seniors joined the campaign that has become more intense over the last few weeks.
First, it was former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia who walked out of jail in August. In September, Arvind Kejriwal was released and in October, Satyendar Jain got bail.
Speaking to News18 on why they started campaigning so soon compared to other parties, AAP’s Gopal Rai, the convener of the party’s Delhi unit, said they don’t have much money to spend on campaigns and the only thing in their favour is time.
“We start the campaign in advance to reach out to maximum people. Our aim is to reach every person. And since we don’t have much resources, we focus on utilising the time we have,” he said.
The party’s Rajya Sabha MP, Sanjay Singh, said they started in advance to ensure a micro-level reach.
“We have a history of starting campaigns six months in advance. This is the reason for our big victories in Delhi. It takes time to reach out to people and tell them what you have in mind. If you want a campaign at the micro-level, then you have to start in advance,” Singh told News18.
The ‘padyatras’ were launched by Sisodia around mid-August. Kerjiwal joined these marches around mid-October. In between, several senior party leaders also held these yatras. On Sunday, Kejriwal launched the second phase of the ‘padyatras’.
Both Congress and BJP in Delhi are yet to officially launch their poll campaigns for the assembly elections though both have been attacking the city government for various issues ranging from air pollution to pollution in Yamuna.
Last month, Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Devender Yadav flagged off seven mobile vans to collect the suggestions of residents of all the seven parliamentary constituencies of Delhi as part of the outreach programme ‘Dilli Walon Aao, Dilli Chalao’ to be included in the manifesto for the assembly elections.
The AAP was founded on November 26, 2012, by Kejriwal. The next year Delhi went for polls and the new party emerged as the second-largest party with 28 seats in hands. Kejriwal formed the government as the Congress extended support to the party. The short-lived government dissolved in less than two months. Delhi again went for polls in 2015 and of the 70 assembly seats in Delhi, AAP bagged 67, leaving three for BJP and none for Congress.
Congress that ruled Delhi between 1998 and 2013 failed to bag any seat even in the 2020 assembly polls. AAP got 62 seats and the remaining eight went to the BJP. The next assembly polls in Delhi are important for all these parties — for AAP to retain its home state and for BJP and Congress to make a comeback in the city.
Congress has been out of power in the city since 2013 while BJP since 1998.
