AAP Karnataka convenor: ‘The state our gateway to South, we’re trying to change narrative’

Reddy: We have released names of 140 candidates, which include 11 women, 21 post-graduates, nine doctors, 10 engineers, 14 farmers, 16 advocates and six MBA graduates. Our only criteria for selecting candidates was their efficiency and past history of being involved in social service. We have not fielded candidates based on religion, caste or other dynamics. For example, we have fielded a Hindu candidate in Shivajinagar, which is considered a ‘Muslim seat’. We want to break the chain and bring a new narrative to politics in Karnataka.

Q: The AAP in Delhi is in turmoil (due to the arrest of Manish Sisodia). How will you carry out your campaign?

Reddy: Manish Sisodia’s arrest is politically motivated and won’t affect us in any way. You will see Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, MP Raghav Chadda campaigning in the state. We are going to travel across the state and will convey to the voters the difference we have made in Delhi and Punjab. As a relatively small party, funds are a concern. The other issues (arrests) were anticipated.

Q: In Karnataka, the AAP does not have a CM face or even a face of the party. How will you tackle this?

Reddy: We are looking at our principles and not at personalities. Once the results are out, personalities will naturally evolve. All 224 candidates of our party will be CM aspirants. We will leave it to the people to choose it.

Q: Will former IPS officer Bhaskar Rao quitting the party affect your prospects?

Reddy: I don’t want to comment on him. He was with the AAP for nearly a year, exposing the corruption carried out by the BJP in Karnataka every day. Now, he has joined the same party, saying he can’t see growth in his political career in the AAP. His words speak for themselves. He has joined the same party he used to call corrupt.

Q: What made you contest all the seats in Karnataka, where you have little presence?

Reddy: This will be the biggest state AAP has ever fought. It is the first time that 224 AAP candidates are contesting in one state, a milestone and historic move in our political journey. For the AAP, Karnataka is a gateway to South India and the outcome is crucial. We want to break our label as an ‘urban political party’, and will reach out to the rural areas of the state. Our primary focus will be those areas where there is lesser communal/caste politics and where people vote based on local issues. You can see the BJP, Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) blaming each other over corruption. But none of them is in a position to claim they are corruption free. It is true our party has a great chance of winning seats in Bengaluru, but our focus this time will also be north Karnataka, where we have got good support from the public.

Q: What makes you think people will vote for AAP?

Reddy: We have a record of fulfilling our promises. Whatever the Congress, BJP and JD(S) have in their manifestos are copies of AAP promises in Delhi and Punjab. We have already announced 10 guarantees, including 300 units of free electricity, 80 per cent reservation for locals in jobs, and filling up of all vacant posts in the state. We will fulfill these if elected, as we did in Delhi and Punjab.