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How social media gives AAP a voice in political sphere
NEW DELHI: Three days before AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal set out for Amritsar to appear in a defamation case slapped on him by Punjab minister Bikramjit Singh Majithia,
NEW DELHI: Three days before AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal set out for Amritsar to appear in a defamation case slapped on him by Punjab minister Bikramjit Singh Majithia, the party’s social media team got cracking.
The team that comprises a few hundred full-timers and a vast network of volunteers made Majithia’s name trend.
AAP workers i n Punjab tweeted and retweeted t he charges against the minister that had invited the defamation complaint.
By Friday, workers from different parts of Punjab were headed for Amritsar, turning a court appearance into a political event ahead of state elections.
When Kejriwal’s lawyers told him he could seek exemption from personal appearance, he said he had better plans.
Experts say using a combination of social media management, aggression, the element of surprise and unorthodox politics, AAP has created a space in the public discourse since the party’s inception. When Parliament is in session, debates and discussions in Rajya Sabha become the nucleus of opposition politics that often decides the fate of crucial bills.
But AAP, with no representation in the Upper House yet, manages to assert its opposition by using social media to raise issues. After the Lok Sabha Speaker suspended Bhagwant Mann, its most vocal lawmaker in the Lower House, the party decided to go on the offensive.
“There is a political discourse within the walls of Parliament but there is a larger discourse that is not confined to Parliament. That, AAP is able to dominate because they know how to attract attention,” says political scientist Prof Badri Narayan.
The buzz that the party creates on media ensures that mainstream media, especially TV, cannot ignore it.
AAP’s top body, the Political Affairs Committee, reviews its communication strategy “as often as needed”, says Dilip Pandey, who heads the party’s communication cell.
“We admit we are aggressive but on issues dear to us and that has helped us capture political space on social media.” Abhinav Budhiraja, who heads social media for AAP, is a 27-year-old management graduate who gave up his job as product head in a startup and switched to politics after a meeting with Kejriwal in December 2013.
Kejriwal’s deputy Manish Sisodia, a former journalist, still sits at the editing table when the party is posting an important video on its YouTube channel.
