Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit strongly criticized Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s recent statement that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) would not form an alliance with Congress for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. Dikshit emphasized that the Delhi Congress had no intention of aligning with AAP, accusing the latter of mismanaging Delhi for a decade.
“Delhi Congress had no plan of alliance, especially with AAP. When we made it clear that there wouldn’t be any alliance, maybe AAP has also accepted it…now, Delhi is known for the wrong reasons. We have a responsibility that we cannot be with a party that has ruined Delhi for ten years. Delhi is known for wrong reasons because of AAP. How can we — a party that has always stood for the people — ally with a party which has been responsible for the damage done to Delhi. Congress has always stood for the people’s interest,” Dikshit told media.
Adding to this, Congress leader Udit Raj questioned the timing and intent behind Kejriwal’s statement, given that Congress’ Delhi unit had already ruled out an alliance.
“When Congress’ Delhi Unit President Devender Yadav has already said that there would be no alliance, then where does the question arise from? It means that they are afraid and want to create such an environment that Congress compromises. Otherwise, when this has been clarified, then it should not happen again,” Raj stated.
Arvind Kejriwal, AAP’s National Convenor, reiterated on Sunday that there would be no political tie-up with Congress in Delhi ahead of the assembly elections. Speaking at a press conference, Kejriwal firmly said, “There will be no alliance in Delhi (for assembly elections).”
In a separate development, noted UPSC coach Awadh Ojha joined AAP in the presence of Arvind Kejriwal and senior party leader Manish Sisodia on Monday, further bolstering the party’s visibility ahead of the elections.