Vikrant Shekhawat : Jan 10, 2025, 06:20 PM
Delhi Election: The political contest between Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress has intensified in the upcoming assembly elections of Delhi. Where Congress had no special interference in Delhi politics till just eight months ago, now it has entered the field with full strength. Congress is adopting a strategy to surround Aam Aadmi Party by fielding big faces. At the same time, Congress has made a flurry of promises to thwart Arvind Kejriwal's guarantee schemes.Round of allegations and counter-allegations between Congress-AAPRecently, Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal accused Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of a behind-the-scenes agreement. At the same time, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot clearly said in an interview that Congress's real fight in the Delhi elections is with Aam Aadmi Party.Amidst this political confrontation, there are signs of a rift in the All India Alliance as well. Many parties like Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party are openly supporting Aam Aadmi Party. In such a situation, the question arises that why did Congress decide to open a strong front against Aam Aadmi Party? Let us look at five important figures to understand this.1. Aam Aadmi Party has snatched power from Congress in Delhi and PunjabDelhi was a strong fort of Congress till the 2013 assembly elections. But Arvind Kejriwal targeted the Congress high command and the then Chief Minister Sheila Dixit in his election campaign. In the 2013 elections, Congress got only 8 seats, while Aam Aadmi Party got 28 seats. After this, Congress supported AAP, but Kejriwal resigned within 49 days.In the 2015 elections, the vote share of Congress came down to 9 percent, which was 24 percent in 2013. At the same time, Congress's performance was very poor in the 2020 elections as well.Aam Aadmi Party registered a big victory by snatching power from Congress in Punjab too. Congress believes that if it does not fight strongly against AAP in Delhi, its effect will be seen in Punjab and other states as well.2. Spoiled Congress' game in Gujarat and Goa electionsIn the 2022 Gujarat Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party caused heavy damage to Congress. While Congress had won 77 seats in 2017, this number came down to 17 in 2022.Aam Aadmi Party won 5 seats and came second on 30 seats. AAP got 12.9 percent votes in Gujarat elections. At the same time, the vote share of Congress fell from 40 percent to 27 percent.In Goa too, Congress was competing with BJP, but AAP caused loss to Congress there too.3. Congress is in danger from AAP in states like AssamIn Assam, there has been a direct contest between Congress and BJP till now. But in the 2022 Guwahati civic elections, Aam Aadmi Party showed that it is gaining foothold in Assam by getting 10 percent votes.Congress fears that if a strong fight is not fought against Aam Aadmi Party now, then in future Congress may have to face losses in states like Assam as well.4. Congress is learning from historyThere are many such examples in the history of Congress when allies harmed it. In 2000, Congress supported RJD in Bihar and gradually got out of the state politics.In West Bengal also, Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress sidelined Congress as soon as it came to power. In the 2021 elections, Congress left the field open for Mamata, after which the performance of Congress in West Bengal was reduced to zero.5. Congress wants to send a message to alliesAnother purpose of fighting strongly against Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi is to send a message to allies like Samajwadi Party and RJD. Congress wants to be taken on the front foot in states like UP and Bihar. If Congress succeeds in the Delhi elections, it will also impact the 2025 Bihar elections and the 2027 UP elections.The Congress believes that if it fights strongly against AAP in Delhi, it will also have a positive impact on its allies in other states.ConclusionThe growing political conflict between Congress and Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi can affect future politics in many states. The front that Congress has opened against AAP is not limited to Delhi only, but it will also affect states like Punjab, Gujarat, Goa and Assam.The Congress wants to ensure that in future it does not have to suffer political losses due to Aam Aadmi Party in any state. That is why, this time Congress has decided to put all its strength in Delhi.