Video Editor: Mohd Irshad Alam
The Aam Aadmi Party’s Arvind Kejriwal's is set to return as chief minister for a third consecutive term. Here's what the AAP's spectacular victory in Delhi means for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Hindu voters rejected the BJP’s divisive politics. In spite of the saffron party trying hard to win over voters through campaigns, hate speech, and incitement of violence, their tactics didn’t bear fruit.
This was the first election since the Citizenship (Amendment) Act came into force. The BJP used the new law as a key point in its campaigns.
The AAP’s campaign, on the other hand, was based on issues like electricity, education, pipelines and more.
The BJP didn’t treat this election as a minor one. It held more than 650 public meetings and roadshows. Home Minister Amit Shah held 52 rallies, party President JP Nadda held 41, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held 12, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held two and even Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held two rallies. And despite such intensive efforts, the AAP managed to retain its vote share.
Another thing to note is that in the Lok Sabha elections, the ‘Modi factor’ plays a key role in paving the BJP’s path to victory. However, the same is not true for Assembly elections.
Questions now arise about whether not fielding a CM candidate acted against the BJP. It also needs to be seen whether the BJP’s leadership needs restructuring. Most importantly, one wonders if people have gotten tired of Hindutva’s hate politics.
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