DELHI ELECTIONS WITNESSED A CLOSE RACE BETWEEN RAHUL AND KEJRIWAL TO DEMOLISH EACH OTHER: Dr CHANDRA

Reflecting on BJP’s massive comeback to power in Delhi, Dr Jagdeesh Chandra discusses the challenges facing the newly elected BJP government in Delhi, focusing on fulfilling campaign promises, particularly pollution control and cleaning the Yamuna, to avoid the pitfalls of Kejriwal’s unfulfilled commitments. It highlights how Modi’s budget relief for the middle class shifted key voters, and how Parvesh Verma’s courage in defeating Kejriwal raised his profile as a potential CM candidate. Kejriwal’s defeat is framed as a direct result of his tarnished image and the BJP’s successful strategy, which also caused a breakup with Congress over an alliance. The conversation touches on Bhagwant Mann’s stability in Punjab while noting the pivotal role of regional Chief Ministers in the BJP’s election success in Delhi. (Part-II)

• What are the challenges before the new BJP government in Delhi today?
  Dr Jagdeesh Chandra: The biggest challenge is to implement the promises and declarations made. The one-line challenge is to ensure the promises are fulfilled. Arvind Kejriwal’s biggest mistake was that he didn’t fulfil the promises he made to the people. He made several promises but didn’t deliver on many. This led to a loss of trust among the people, among other issues. Whether it was pollution, corruption, or other factors, the core reason was the unfulfilled promises. The BJP has to be very, very careful about implementing the promises made in their election manifesto. Especially, the five major promises — pollution control, cleaning the Yamuna, road cleaning, and other big promises, including freebies — should show concrete action for implementation. Indeed, elections are five years away, but this time, Modi’s credibility is at stake. The election was won under Narendra Modi’s guarantee, so Modi himself has to ensure it, and the PMO needs to make sure through remote control that the promised budget allocations are made. What is the implementation stage of these promises? I believe the PMO should have a desk dedicated to monitoring this. So, the biggest challenge is to ensure that the promises of clean governance and good administration are fulfilled.

• Is it true that Narendra Modi’s Middle-Class Budget Relief Card changed all the equations in this election?
  Yes, it is true. For the first time, the middle class, upper-middle class, and OBCs came together. They sympathised with the poor, but the question was, “When will attention be given to them?” The Kejriwal government was always focused on free schemes for the poor, but the middle class was troubled by the condition of civic administration. 67% of the middle class, which plays a decisive role in elections, had lost trust. Narendra Modi won them over with two masterstrokes. First, the provision of Rs 1 lakh crore for the middle class in the budget, and second, the 8th Pay Commission. Government employees and the middle class felt blessed. It became very difficult for Kejriwal to compete with this budget. The biggest thing is that Modi’s strategy was a positive one, and it succeeded in winning the election. When you engage in positive politics, the public accepts it. But if you do negative politics, the public considers it just a political game. The middle class has completely shifted towards the BJP. Now, the challenge before the BJP is to fulfil the aspirations of the middle class. If their expectations aren’t met, they will go back to where they were before.

• What do you think about BJP candidate Parvesh Verma, who defeated Kejriwal, insisting that he would contest the election against Kejriwal himself?
  It was his courage and conviction — very impressive and encouraging. I remember hearing that Amit Shah advised him to contest from somewhere else, or else he might lose. But Parvesh Verma replied, “I will contest from here and show that I can win.” And he did. Such courage and conviction deserve praise. Now, his claim to become the Chief Minister should be taken seriously. A person with such courage and commitment deserves a big opportunity.

• How did even prominent leaders like Kejriwal and Sisodia lose in this shameful defeat of the Aam Aadmi Party?
  They lost because the public now votes decisively. Arvind Kejriwal’s image was so dismantled by Narendra Modi that he was no longer capable of contesting an election. He faced such serious corruption charges that his personality was destroyed. Sisodia’s loss should be seen in the same context. Although he was considered a better candidate than Kejriwal, he still lost. A Jaipurbased astrologer, Kumar Ganesh, had already predicted that both would lose. But astrology aside, the fundamental reason is that Kejriwal’s image was completely ruined. He had to pay the political price for standing against Narendra Modi.

• While the BJP’s massive victory is one thing, was this election a kind of referendum on Kejriwal?
  You could say that. There are two things. Firstly, did the vote go in favour of Narendra Modi’s face? The answer to this is Yes. Secondly, was it a negative referendum against Kejriwal? Yes, again. Narendra Modi’s face dominated the election. You can think of it like this: On Holi, when someone’s face is covered with colours, it becomes hard to recognise them. BJP turned Kejriwal’s face into one covered in colours, and now it will take time for him to clean it off. This election was truly a negative referendum. But that wasn’t the only reason. The lack of an alliance between Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party was also a major reason. Second, Kejriwal’s negative personality and the corruption charges were the main factors behind his defeat. The biggest reason was the confrontation with Narendra Modi, which led to Kejriwal’s destruction.

• Why did the relationship between Rahul Gandhi and Kejriwal break down at the last moment? And how did the Congress-AAP alliance fall apart? Did Congress take revenge for the defeat in Haryana?
  It’s unfortunate for both Kejriwal and Congress. The breakdown is due to the immaturity of leaders from both sides. Both parties were influenced by their advisors, which led to the collapse of the alliance — a golden opportunity for the BJP.
  The immediate reason for the alliance falling apart was the situation in Uttar Pradesh, where Congress didn’t get seats from Akhilesh Yadav, forcing them to give only friendly support. In Haryana, initial agreements for six seats were made, but opposition from leaders like Ajay Maken and Manmohan Singh led to a breakdown. When Kejriwal started gaining support, Maken and others criticized him, accusing him of being antinational. This led to a full breakdown of talks, with Congress insisting they wouldn’t fight elections together, while Kejriwal tried to salvage things by contacting everyone involved. Rahul Gandhi felt left out, which hurt him, leading to the collapse of the alliance. Congress now feels AAP grew by taking their votes, and they want to reclaim those votes by opposing AAP. However, it’s unrealistic to think AAP can be removed from every state and expect the votes to return. Meanwhile, BJP leaders like Amit Shah and JP Nadda are smiling, while Modi watches the drama unfold.

• What impact will Kejriwal’s loss in Delhi have on Bhagwant Mann’s government in Punjab? Is it possible that Bhagwant Mann could switch sides and join the BJP?
  I don’t think Bhagwant Mann will join the BJP. Although such discussions were there in the past, it seems the BJP didn’t push in that direction. Bhagwant Mann doesn’t seem to have a manipulative or opportunistic nature. However, the stability of the Punjab government could be impacted. The BJP could try to weaken Mann’s government. Some MLAs may leave the party, and Bhagwant Mann could even form his own party. In the worst-case scenario, the President’s Rule could be imposed.
  But, I don’t think there will be a major political crisis in Punjab right now.

• We have heard that some Chief Ministers played a big role in the Delhi elections?
  When Amit Shah plans a program, he deploys the whole team. He brought in the Chief Ministers, especially from North India — the Chief Ministers from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh came to campaign. In addition, the Chief Ministers from Odisha, Assam, and even Chandrababu Naidu were brought in. Everyone performed well. I closely observed the Rajasthan team. The Rajasthan Chief Minister and Deputy CM came, along with Satish Poonia and Sunil Bansal. The Rajasthan leadership campaigned here, and of the 11 seats where the Rajasthan CM campaigned, the BJP won all of them.
  The Rajasthan team was much happy with their success. Most Chief Ministers contributed successfully. Yogi Adityanath, in particular, is always expected to perform well. He’s campaigned in several states, and his strike rate is impressive. He’s considered the third major votecatcher after Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. He went to Haryana, Maharashtra, and also Delhi. His success rate is above 90%. In Rajasthan, where he campaigned, all 11 seats were won, giving him a 100% success rate. Yogi is still Yogi. All the Chief Ministers contributed to the best of their ability. Many Chief Ministers called the Prime Minister to congratulate him, and the Prime Minister accepted their congratulations. He was in a very good mood, meeting people and receiving congratulations on the phone. It was a positive and enthusiastic moment in the party. Before Narendra Modi’s foreign trip, Amit Shah and JP Nadda gave him a great gift, saying, “You can go to America and France with peace of mind.”

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