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Anna Hazare's ‘tangled in liquor’ attack on Arvind Kejriwal: ‘AAP setback in Delhi poll because…’
Anna Hazare criticises Arvind Kejriwal's AAP for its electoral losses in Delhi, citing a tarnished image and controversies surrounding liquor and money.
Veteran social activist Anna Hazare on Saturday reacted to the ongoing Delhi assembly election results, saying that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is facing electoral losses due to its leadership’s tainted image and involvement in controversies related to liquor and money.
Speaking on the Delhi assembly election results, Anna Hazare remarked, “I have been saying for a long time that while contesting elections, the candidate must have character, good ideas, and an unblemished image. But they (AAP) didn’t maintain that. They got tangled in liquor and money – his (Arvind Kejriwal's) image was dented because of it, and that’s why they are getting fewer votes in the election.”
Anna Hazare, who was once a mentor to former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal during the India Against Corruption movement, distanced himself from the AAP when it was formed in 2012.
Emphasising the importance of integrity in politics, Anna Hazare said, “People saw that he (Kejriwal) talks about character but gets involved in liquor. In politics, allegations are made, but one has to prove that he is not guilty. The truth will remain the truth.”
Reiterating his decision to stay away from the party, Hazare added, “When a meeting was held, I decided that I would not be part of the party – and I have remained away from that day.”
The AAP, which came to power in Delhi in 2015 with a sweeping mandate and retained it in 2020, is trailing behind the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2025 assembly election amid multiple controversies, including the liquor policy scam case.
Top AAP leaders such as Arvind Kejriwal, Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj and Somnath Bharti were trailing from their respective seats in the election.
Kejriwal, Sisodia, Atishi are faces of corruption: Delhi BJP
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said the people of Delhi have chosen Prime Minister Narendra Modi's good model of governance and have rejected Arvind Kejriwal's bad model as the BJP crossed the majority mark in Delhi election results in the early trends.
Speaking to ANI, Sachdeva emphasised this election was a contest between good governance and bad governance.
"The situation in Delhi--contaminated water, broken roads, poor sanitation, pollution in Yamuna, and much more--is a reflection of Kejriwal's model of governance, which the people of Delhi have rejected," he said.
"On the other hand, Modi ji's model of good governance is one that the entire nation respects. People have chosen good governance," he added.
