NEW DELHI: Conceding a nil to seven defeat in the parliamentary polls in Delhi, the Aam Aadmi Party has decided to go it alone in the Assembly polls, which are months away in the city. The AAP fought the Lok Sabha polls in alliance with the Congress as a part of INDIA bloc, with many within and outside AAP wondering whether the alliance would continue for the 70-member Assembly.
“The alliance was formed for Lok Sabha elections only,” said senior AAP leader and minister Gopal Rai on Thursday.
“This is clear from the first day that the INDIA bloc was formed for the Lok Sabha elections. As far as Vidhan Sabha is concerned, no alliance has been formed. Aam Aadmi Party will fight elections with its full strength,” Rai said after a meeting of party MLAs at CM Arvind Kejriwal’s residence.
The AAP has registered two landslide victories in as many assembly elections, but the party drew a blank in Lok Sabha polls in 2014, 2019 and 2024.
The AAP-Congress pre-poll alliance was aimed at preventing a split in the anti-BJP votes. The AAP had entered into a seat-sharing agreement of 4:3 with its staunch rival. However, the party failed to reverse its fortunes. The BJP continued to prove its dominance in Delhi bagging all seven seats.
With Kejriwal behind bars, and other senior leaders grappling with back-to-back attacks from the BJP, the party’s future seems in trouble. As Delhi goes to the elections in January 2025, the party has some introspection to do before it can hit the campaign trail.