Support for AAP has grown after Kejriwal’s arrest: Delhi Minister Gopal Rai

Gopal Rai, Delhi minister and party’s state unit convener, said the party is conducting its campaign for the Lok Sabha elections at three levels.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Delhi convener Gopal Rai said on Thursday that the party was running an intense campaign for the Lok Sabha elections. He said unfazed by the action against party’s top leadership, AAP workers are reaching out to thousands of households every day. Excerpts from an interview:

How is AAP’s Lok Sabha elections campaign progressing the absence of party chief Arvind Kejriwal?

We are running a three-layered campaign. Firstly, “Jail Ka Jawab Vote Se”, under which 2,000 teams of party workers are working on the ground, and each team visits 25 households every day and urge people to vote against the arrest of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. We have reached out to more than 600,000 households so far. Secondly, candidates are holding padayatras and indoor meetings in each municipal ward daily. Thirdly, from April 16 we have started holding “Sankalp Sabha” programme in which 200 meetings are being held across constituencies. We had to redesign our campaign to ensure that people are able to express their outrage against the “political arrest” of the Delhi chief minister.

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With Kejriwal in jail, how is the AAP planning to fill in the gap? Who is taking decisions in his absence?

Our party leaders are holding public meetings just like Kejriwal used to do. The list of star campaigners for Delhi will come out soon, and they will work provide further impetus to the campaign. In Kejriwal’s absence, the party organisation is taking decisions collectively. We successfully held a mega Opposition rally on March 31 in Ramlila Maidan. The AAP leaders coordinated with several Opposition leaders and brought them together from across the country. The team is working hard. Everyone is playing their role. We are working with double the energy and resolve.

Will Sunita Kejriwal be a star campaigner in Delhi?

Yes, she will be a star campaigner in Delhi. She will also visit Punjab. She has been communicating his [Kejriwal’s] messages from jail with the party.

What has been the impact of Kejriwal’s arrest on the party?

In fact, the arrest has come as a blow to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Millions of people voted for the AAP in the assembly elections. But, they used to shift loyalties in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls, thinking the AAP did not have a big stake. However, the arrest has turned things around. Even the BJP leaders who have met me (since arrest) told me that Kejriwal should not have been arrested. The people are not aware of a single work done by the seven BJP MPs in Delhi, but they are well aware of the work by the Kejriwal government. After Kejriwal’s arrest, people have decided to support the AAP even in the Lok Sabha elections. When the BJP workers meet people, they are asked why Arvind Kejriwal was put in jail, because it is Kejriwal who is providing free 24×7 electricity, free water…

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Is the AAP’s alliance with the Congress helping?

The cumulative vote share of the two parties in Delhi was 40% in 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The day the alliance was formed the political equations changed. In the last two LS polls, the AAP and the Congress contested separately and lost due to a triangular contest with the BJP. The alliance has given much confidence to the workers from the two parties that they can defeat the BJP together. The BJP had to drop six of its seven sitting MPs due to this.

Is the AAP open to forming an alliance with the Congress for the 2025 assembly elections as well?

The results of the Lok Sabha elections will set the stage for further course of action. Currently, it is a question whether democracy will survive in this country or not. It is not known if the BJP will allow assembly elections in Delhi in 2025, if it comes back to power at the Centre. Everything depends on the Lok Sabha polls. In 2025, the BJP will not get a single out of 70 seats, if elections are held.

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AAP contested around 400 seats in 2014, but this time it has confined itself only to 22 seats. Why?

We took the practical decision based on the experience from the last two elections. This time more than contesting all seats, it was important to defeat the BJP. The political crackdown against the opposition parties, especially in the last two years has created an emergency-like situation in the country. If the BJP is not defeated, the situation is likely to turn worse. They will crush all the opposition governments in all the states. They are misusing the federal agencies. No raids are being conducted against BJP leaders.

Raaj Kumar Anand’s resignation triggered speculations that the AAP may disintegrate. What do you think?

After the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal, we held a mega rally at the Ramila Maidan which displayed AAP’s strength. The party is completely united. We will again show the strength of the AAP on May 25 [During the polling].

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