NEW DELHI: As the election trends signalled a convincing victory for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Delhi, the blame game has started among the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) – key constituents of the INDIA bloc – blaming each other for the incumbent AAP’s failure to secure a third term in Delhi.
The trends showed the return of the BJP-led NDA government to power in Delhi after 28 years, leading in over 45 seats. The AAP is above the 20-seat mark, while the Congress appears to be heading for a wipeout for the third time in a row.
The vote share of Congress, which contested alone, showed 6.31 per cent at 1 pm, registering a slight increase from its 4.26 per cent in the 2020 assembly elections. However, the current vote share shows a decline from the grand old party’s 9.7 per cent in the 2015 assembly elections.
As the results started pouring in, the Congress chose to put the onus of the electoral setback on AAP’s unwillingness to forge an alliance with it in the capital.
Posting a video grab of former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Congress MP Manickam Tagore wrote on X, "Today the result." The video, shot on December 1, showed Kejriwal asserting that 'no alliance with Congress' in Delhi.
The view was echoed by several Congress leaders, including party spokespersons Supriya Shrinate and Shama Mohammed.
Speaking to the media, Shrinate maintained that it is not the responsibility of Congress to make the AAP win. While the AAP leaders accused the Congress of striking a truck with the BJP, the Congress justifies its decision to field strong candidates such as Sandeep Dikshit and Alka Lamba against AAP heavyweights to boost the party’s spirit.
Congress leaders also feel that the Kejriwal-led AAP has dented the electoral prospects of the party in several states such as Goa, Haryana, Gujarat, and Uttarakhand in past elections. They point out that in Goa and Uttarakhand, the AAP garnered votes equivalent to the vote-share difference between the Congress and the saffron party.
The grand old party’s decision to go solo in Delhi was driven by the ambition of reviving the sagging fortunes of the party, which ruled Delhi for 15 years. The decision came months after it contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in an alliance with AAP. It is no surprise that many Congress leaders seem to be rejoicing in the defeat of the AAP, as they feel that the meteoric rise of the ‘Jhadoo party’ was at their expense.
The Congress also feels that AAP played a significant role in its humiliating defeat in the recent Haryana assembly elections, where both parties fought separately. A senior leader said that AAP is responsible for its defeat in at least half a dozen of Haryana's 90 Assembly seats.
INDIA bloc prospects
The results of the Delhi election are certain to have a huge impact on the future of the INDIA bloc in the political landscape and in the upcoming Bihar elections.
On Saturday, several INDIA bloc leaders criticised the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party's decision to go solo in Delhi. Knives were out as Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah took potshots at Congress and the AAP.
“Fight each other more,” he wrote on X.
Earlier also, he had questioned the relevance of the grouping, saying that it existed only for Lok Sabha elections. Another ally, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, claimed that the two parties would have won the Delhi election had they fought together.
"The early trends show a sharp competition. Had Congress and AAP been together, the results may have been different... The political opponent of AAP and Congress is BJP. Both of them fought to keep the BJP from coming to power, but they fought individually. If they had been together, then BJP's defeat must have been confirmed in the first hour of counting," he said.
The months-long Delhi election campaign has often witnessed ugly spats between the INDIA bloc partners, as many of them supported the Kejriwal-led AAP as the best bet to fight the BJP.
The Delhi results will have a bearing on the Bihar assembly election, scheduled for November this year. Significantly, Congress ally RJD in Bihar is already making noises about the future of the INDIA bloc. The grouping is also grappling with leadership questions, as many of its constituents, including key players RJD, Shiv Sena (UBT), and SP, openly support TMC chief Mamata Banerjee as the face of the bloc.
