New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Chief Arvind Kejriwal urged not to waste their votes on the Congress party on Wednesday, claiming it indirectly supported the Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP) in the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections.
Addressing a ‘janasabha’ in Badli, Kejriwal told supporters, “Why waste your votes on the Congress? The Congress will not win, it will just cut our votes. The Congress and the BJP are fighting this election together to defeat the AAP. Vote to make someone win, not to make someone lose.” His comments come as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) faces a direct challenge from both the Congress and the BJP in the constituency.
Kejriwal further defended his party’s welfare schemes, citing a survey suggesting 70 percent of women support AAP. He urged women to convince the men in their families to vote for his party, claiming that the BJP and Congress often swayed men.
In Badli, AAP has fielded sitting MLA Ajesh Yadav, who has won the seat in the past two elections (2015 and 2020). His main rival is Congress’ Delhi unit president Devender Yadav, who previously held the seat in 2008 and 2013. The BJP has nominated Deepak Chaudhary as its candidate.
Kejriwal also took aim at the BJP over the rising ammonia levels in the Yamuna River, accusing the Haryana government of “poisoning” Delhi’s water supply. “The BJP has crossed all limits in politics. The BJP-led Haryana government has put poison named ammonia in the water. But we saved the people of Delhi by diverting the toxic water,” Kejriwal said. He added that people in Delhi and Haryana were all “one.”
Kejriwal’s comments on Congress come amid tensions within the INDIA alliance, which have escalated following a public exchange with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi had recently accused Kejriwal of being “afraid” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and being involved in the “liquor scam.” Kejriwal responded sharply on social media, stating, “Don’t preach on fear and bravery. The country knows who is a coward and who is brave.”
He also took the opportunity to target Congress over the National Herald case and the land-grab allegations involving Robert Vadra.
The rift between AAP and Congress has been increasingly evident, especially with both parties opting to contest the Delhi Assembly elections separately, despite having once joined forces for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The Congress, which ruled Delhi for 15 years under Sheila Dikshit, is aiming to regain lost ground, while AAP fights off both Congress and BJP contenders.
With the elections scheduled for February 5 and results due on February 8, the political temperature in Delhi is rising. The Congress is striving for a comeback, while the BJP, which has been out of power in Delhi for 25 years, is making a concerted effort to unseat AAP.
Key allies of the INDIA alliance, such as Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress and Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party, have thrown their support behind Kejriwal, further intensifying the political battle in the national capital.
