‘One should never be overconfident in elections’: AAP chief Kejriwal after Haryana poll results

The AAP contested 88 of the 90 seats in Haryana, deciding to go alone after seat-sharing talks with the Congress fell through. It did not win any seats. The BJP looks set to win 48 while the Congress is at 37.

Kejriwal cautioned councillors against overconfidence ahead of the upcoming Delhi assembly elections, urging them to focus on the concerns of their constituents, particularly cleanliness and waste management in the city. “Elections are coming, and we must work hard. Don’t take any election lightly. Every election is tough, and every seat is difficult. You all have an important role in this election because we are in the MCD, and people expect cleanliness from us. Clean your areas, ensure garbage is picked up, and roads are swept. If you do that, I’m confident we will win,” he said.

Kejriwal also acknowledged the discontent within AAP’s ranks. Since his arrest, AAP has seen a series of defections, with at least 10 councillors and three MLAs leaving the party, including a former and a sitting minister. Social Welfare Minister Raaj Kumar Anand left to contest the Lok Sabha elections on a BSP ticket, while his predecessor, Rajendra Pal Gautam, joined the Congress — an ally of AAP in the INDIA bloc — just before the Haryana polls.

In the MCD, the party has faced multiple waves of defections — on September 25, three councillors joined the BJP; two others joined before the Lok Sabha elections. Five more defected on August 26, although one councillor, Ramchander, rejoined the AAP shortly after, citing a dream in which he saw Kejriwal.

“I read a statement by Ramchander ji, where he mentioned seeing me in his dreams, which inspired him to come back. It shows how deeply connected we are, even in the most trying times,” Kejriwal said, asking AAP councillors to focus on public service rather than political ambitions.

Speaking to The Indian Express after his brief exit from the AAP, Ramchander, a former MLA, had expressed frustration over not receiving a ticket in the 2020 elections which had forced him to contest as a councillor.

Despite electoral victories, Kejriwal said there has been a sense of dissatisfaction among members at various levels. “Everyone is unhappy,” he remarked. “Those who did not get a ticket are unhappy, those who got a ticket and won or lost are unhappy… Now, the one who won is thinking he should get the MLA ticket… it is not like the MLA is happy. He is also unhappy, he is thinking that he should become a minister… it is not like the one who became a minister is happy, he too is unhappy,” he said.

Taking a jibe at PM Modi, he said, “… and the Prime Minister is the unhappiest… because he can’t figure out how to control Kejriwal, even though Kejriwal is just a small man.”