AHMEDABAD: After its historic poll victory in Punjab, the Aam Aadmi Party has its eyes set on Gujarat, where Assembly elections are due later this year.
To replicate the success of Punjab in PM Modi’s home state, the Arvind Kejriwal-led party has deployed former IIT-Delhi professor Sandeep Pathak, credited as the ‘Chanakya’ behind AAP’s spectacular success in Punjab, as in-charge of the state.
On a mission to expand its national footprint, the AAP has announced office-bearers for several states. But Gujarat tops the party’s priority list where Kejriwal and Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann are expected to sound the poll bugle with a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ in eastern parts of Ahmedabad, dominated by Patidars and Hindi-speaking migrants, middle and lower-middle-class population.
Ahead of their visit, Kejriwal has deputed Pathak to start preparing the groundwork.
“He has worked in Punjab for three years and because of his hard work, the party won a historic mandate,” said AAP spokesperson Yogesh Jadvani.
“This will give a big boost to the local organisation and helps us prepare our poll strategy,” Jadvani said, referring to the appointments of Pathak as Gujarat in-charge and Gulab Singh Yadav as campaign in-charge. “Pathak will visit Gujarat this week and take stock of the poll preparations.”
Experts believe the two leaders will try to draw out politicians from other parties to expand the party’s base in Gujarat. AAP’s priority is to replace Congress in the opposition benches and then grab power from the BJP, said political analyst Dilip Patel.
Hundreds of members of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), including office-bearers, joined the ruling BJP in Gujarat at the party headquarters in Gandhinagar on Wednesday, days ahead of AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal and newly-appointed Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann's visit to Ahmedabad where a roadshow is planned.
Local AAP leaders rubbished the crossover as a "sham," saying that barring a few of its suspended members, the others who joined the BJP were never associated with the Arvind Kejriwal-led party.
At a function held at state BJP headquarter 'Kamalam' in the presence of Gujarat unit chief CR Paatil, hundreds of people took off their 'AAP caps' and wore saffron ones, the BJP said.
Paatil welcomed several of them with saffron scarves.
A large number of office-bearers of AAP and the party members from 11 districts of Gujarat joined the BJP at the party headquarters on Wednesday, the BJP said in a release.
A leader of Akhandwadi Rashtrawadi Sevadal and his supporters also joined the saffron party, it said.
"These people have seen how our Prime Minister is working for the development and security of the country and upliftment of the common man. They approached the BJP to join the party, and today they were inducted," said senior BJP leader Rajni Patel.
A man claimed that he was the president of a taluka minority morcha of AAP and joined BJP on Wednesday.
He said the AAP had not suspended him.
"The AAP is a party rife with corruption. Positions are offered in AAP to only those who offer money, which I do not like. This is the reason I have decided to formally quit AAP," he claimed.
Another man said that if hundreds of people are opposing the policies of AAP then it means something is wrong.
After registering a spectacular performance in Punjab polls, the AAP is now eyeing Gujarat, the stronghold of BJP and home state of prime minister Narendra Modi, where elections are due in December this year.
Kejriwal and Mann are expected to hold a roadshow in Ahmedabad on April 2.
An AAP office-bearer claimed that those who joined BJP on Wednesday were members of the saffron party who were falsely presented as belonging to AAP at the BJP function.
AAP general secretary Manoj Sorathiya rubbished the BJP's claim and said that the ruling party is scared of the AAP's emergence in the politics of Gujarat ahead of polls.
He said AAP is gearing up to contest all the 182 seats in Gujarat.
"The BJP is scared of AAP. We saw only four to five of our members who were officially suspended from AAP earlier, joining the BJP at the function today. On joining of other members, BJP is playing a drama," he said.
Sorathiya dared BJP to prove that those who joined the saffron party were members of AAP.
The AAP made an entry into BJP-ruled Gujarat last year by winning 27 seats in the Surat municipal corporation.
(With PTI Inputs)