New Delhi [India], December 15: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ramesh Pehalwan and his wife Kusumlata joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday in the presence of Arvind Kejriwal, the party’s national convenor. Their decision to join AAP comes ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections, which are expected to take place in early 2025.
In a related development, Kejriwal recently ruled out any possibility of an alliance with the Congress. On Wednesday, he posted on X, saying, “Aam Aadmi Party will be fighting this election on its own strength in Delhi. There is no possibility of any alliance with Congress.”
Earlier, on December 7, Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee President Devendra Yadav had criticized AAP and its leadership, accusing them of being responsible for the “deteriorating” law and order situation in the capital. Yadav also called for the resignation of Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, in the same manner former CM Sheila Dixit was asked to resign during the Nirbhaya case.
In other election-related news, AAP released its third list of candidates for the 2025 Delhi Assembly elections, fielding Tarun Yadav from the Najafgarh constituency. This follows the party’s second list, which saw 17 sitting MLAs replaced by new faces. However, three familiar names — Manish Sisodia, Rakhi Birla, and Deepu Chaudhary — have been re-nominated.
In the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections, AAP won 62 out of 70 seats, while BJP secured 8 seats. Congress, which ruled Delhi for 15 consecutive years, failed to win any seats in the last two elections.