Swati Maliwal assault: How case left AAP on the back foot, gave BJP a campaign issue in slum clusters

In Delhi, the conversation in AAP continued to revolve around Maliwal’s allegations. At a press conference, the only one addressed by AAP during the day, senior AAP leader Atishi called Maliwal a ‘pawn’ in a conspiracy hatched by the BJP.

According to senior AAP leaders, that the controversy has broken out a week before Delhi votes on May 25, is worrying. “While we do not believe that this issue will have any resonance among voters, it saps us of our energy and distracts us from the all-important campaign,” a leader said.

In Delhi, even when Kejriwal was in jail — he was arrested in connection with the money laundering case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi excise policy on March 21 — AAP’s narrative for its campaign was his “unfair” arrest.
After he was released last week, it took a turn towards BJP’s “taanashahi” and an attack on the Constitution, with Kejriwal as the martyr.

“It is unlikely that allegations of this nature are going to sway the voters who have benefitted from AAP’s policies but it affects those on the fence because it shows that the party is going through a period of instability. This is also where BJP scores over the opposition, since its top leadership is seen as decisive,” said another party leader.

The BJP, meanwhile, has not only held multiple press conferences on allegations made by Maliwal since Monday, but has also made it a part of its campaign at the city’s JJ clusters and slums, which have traditionally preferred the AAP and are also home to beneficiaries of the party’s power and water subsidies in addition to its scheme of providing free travel aboard public buses.

“Along with the benefits of central welfare schemes, which, in some instances have provided roofs over their heads in the case of the PMAY and free gas connections under the Ujjwala scheme, the party’s outreach has begun including communication around the incident,” a source said.

“Given the publicity around the incident, people across the city know what happened and BJP leaders have been speaking about the incident to make sure it remains in the public discourse,” the source added.

Where is Bibhav Kumar?

Kumar, who has been booked by the Delhi Police for allegedly assaulting AAP Rajya Sabha MP Maliwal at the official residence of Chief Minister Kejriwal on Monday, is seen as the bridge to Kejriwal in addition to being his eyes and ears in all party-related matters. He also handles everything concerning the CM, from his diabetes medication to his personal phone. Despite MP Sanjay Singh acknowledging on Tuesday that he had “misbehaved” with Maliwal, Kumar was seen at the Lucknow airport with Kejriwal on Wednesday. He then went to Punjab with the CM, following him to Maharashtra on Friday, party insiders said.