Will bounce back in 2025 Delhi assembly polls, says AAP

The party contested 22 seats in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Assam. It won just three seats in Punjab

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Wednesday said Delhi has stayed true to the electoral pattern --- choosing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Lok Sabha elections and voting for the AAP in the assembly polls -- as the party explained its dismal show in the parliamentary elections results of which were announced on Tuesday.

AAP leaders Saurabh Bharadwaj, Sandeep Pathak and Atishi during a press conference in Delhi on Wednesday. (HT photo)

The party contested 22 seats in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Assam. It won just three seats in Punjab.

Party leaders the AAP may have had a disappointing electoral outing but it stays relevant in Delhi where its brought a new brand of politics and brought positive changes in various sectors such as education, health and power. They said AAP’s main aim in these elections was to protect democracy in the country and ensure the victory of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc.

“Delhi has a fixed process, it votes for the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections and votes for Arvind Kejriwal and other parties in the assembly elections. Delhi stuck to its electoral practice this time too. However, the victory margins of of all BJP winners in Delhi has reduced considerably this time as compared to 2019 elections,” AAP leader Sandeep Pathak said in a press conference at party headquarters on Wednesday afternoon.

AAP won three seats in Punjab but in Delhi, it could not win a single Lok Sabha seat in 2014, 2019, and 2024. As part of the INDIA bloc, the AAP contested four seats in Delhi, two in Gujarat, and one in Haryana. The AAP, however, contested on its own in Punjab and Assam where it fielded candidates on two seats.

“In 2019, we got about 7% votes in Punjab and won one seat. We were fourth or fifth on the remaining seats. But this time, we have won three seats, and had close contest on two seats. Apart from this, we have performed well on other seats too. In 2019, AAP’s vote share was 7%, it rose to 26% this time. We should aim higher. We have got fewer seats in Punjab than expected. But we also have to accept that the Lok Sabha elections are fought on a different narrative. This election has proved that the AAP is a well-established party in Punjab as well. Sushil Gupta (AAP Kurukshetra candidate) lost by a margin of just 19,000 votes. The party candidate came second in Bharuch in Gujarat,” Pathak said.

He added that the AAP will work harder the next time.

The party will face assembly elections early next year and plans to contest the Haryana assembly elections later this year, party leaders said.

Referring to the arrest of AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal during the elections, Pathak said, “The BJP put many of our leaders in jail. Our biggest leader, Arvind Kejriwal, was also put in jail. The BJP threatened our volunteers, tried to buy MLAs and hatched conspiracies. But as a result, the people of the country rejected them, and even today the AAP is completely united,” Pathak said.

“After coming out of jail for 21 days on interim bail, Arvind Kejriwal devoted all his time to campaigning. He went to many states and campaigned for all the parties and leaders of the INDIA bloc. He even went to Chandigarh and campaigned for Congress candidate Manish Tewari.

Party leaders who spoke on condition of anonymity said the party’s focus was on ensuring maximum seats for the INDIA bloc.

“We have got one and a half lakh votes in Assam. For the AAP, this election was the election of the country. We went with the INDIA bloc and we followed the coalition ‘dharma’ with full honesty. The public has blessed us so much. We thank the public for this,” said Pathak.