Kejriwal’s Wrong Call

The steep fall in the Aam Aadmi Party’s ratings that appeared competitive as recently as January continues to engage poll analysts and data miners but the drop in support among women voters close to polling is particularly revealing. The AAP promise of transferring ₹2,100 a month to eligible female beneficiaries gave it an initial boost which then petered out. Unlike governments in Jharkhand and Maharashtra that returned to office recently, AAP failed to implement the plan before polling despite having announced it way back in the March 2024 Budget. The reason? AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal was arrested and sent to jail in the Delhi liquor and excise scam soon after the Budget was presented. He remained behind bars till September 13, 2024, after which he was released on bail but could not resume duties as chief minister due to conditions imposed by the Supreme Court. His insistence that he would not resign during the time he was in jail led to a serious paralysis of governance in Delhi. Not only did the proposed payouts remain on paper, civic services were crippled at a time when the record heat of last year’s summer became unbearable for residents. In retrospect, Kejriwal’s decision not to quit and not appoint a successor proved to be a serious error. There is no public evidence of him having left any instructions for the chief secretary about matters of government or whether a number two was authorised to call the cabinet. Far from earning public sympathy, it convinced voters about the downsides of voting AAP.

Jaishankar’s Punch

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is a regular at the Munich security dialogue where he continues to offer home truths to Western leaders and audiences. This year he strongly disagreed with gloomy views of Western participants about the future of democracy—largely triggered by Donald Trump’s return as US president—to assert Indians continue to participate in elections enthusiastically. He argued that democracy has ensured delivery of basic needs such as food security and held up his index finger to show the ink mark of the recent Delhi election. He added, a touch mischievously, that he was showing his forefinger and no other digit to the audience.

BJP Vs Congress Again in Haryana

The gong has been struck for the municipal elections in Haryana and, interestingly, Congress has decided to revise its policy and contest under symbol. This is not a bad idea as it provides voters clearer choices and reduces the horse-trading that can ensue after elections when parties seek to identify “friendly” independents. Though ward and mayoral elections are about grassroots democracy, electing independents is not useful as they often hold councils to ransom and major parties have to put up with their demands which usually include immunity from action against land encroachment.

A Left-handed Compliment

 

The headlines from Karnataka this week saw Congress leader DK Shivakumar hailing chief minister Siddaramaiah as the party’s “undisputed” leader. The comment evoked interest but may not offer much comfort to the chief minister. For one, Shivakumar condescendingly “endorsing” the chief minister’s leadership is not very flattering and then for another, the deputy chief minister advised the Siddaramaiah camp not to “misuse” their leader’s name. The problem, point out insiders, is the inability of the Congress high command to clearly sort out the pecking order. Despite a handsome win in the assembly election, Congress remains subject to distracting discussions stemming from the power play between the two strong men who dominate the party.

After Rana, Who?

The India-US joint statement following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the White House included an unprecedented direct reference to Pakistan, asking it to “expeditiously” bring to justice perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai and Pathankot attacks and ensure its territory is not used to carry out cross-border terrorist attacks. This raised howls of protest in Islamabad. Typically, Pakistan claimed to have paid a high price for combating terrorism. But the reference hurt as previously such allusions were couched in more general terms. The problem is that no one is taking Pakistan’s claims seriously and the reference is a success for Indian diplomacy that has struggled to counter pro-Pakistani lobbies in the US where sections of the military and intelligence community have deep links with the Pakistan army.

Pakistan’s Folly

While US President Donald Trump’s announcement of the deportation of 26/11 key planner Tahawwur Hussain Rana, originally a Pakistan citizen, to India was a significant announcement, his comment that there are others who might be similarly sent back is a warning to various troublemakers wanted in India. It might be the case that the Trump administration will not be accommodative of Khalistani groups who have operated with no hindrance. Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who heads Sikhs for Justice, may not be personally at risk but many of his associates who are wanted for violent crimes in India will need to watch out.

Arvind KejriwalCongressDelhi Assembly Election 2025DK ShivakumargeopoliticsHaryananational politcsS JaishankarSiddaramaiah