The Aam Aadmi Party, which keenly eyed a fourth consecutive term in power in Delhi, got swept out of the national capital by the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2025 assembly elections amid allegations of corruption and scams.
While several factors weighed in on the party’s loss, which saw its seat tally also going down by a huge margin, Arvind Kejriwal’s “failed promises, liquor policy and Sheesh Mahal” remained in focus. In comparison to the AAP’s tally from the 2020 Delhi election of 62 seats, this year’s 22-seat count was a major downfall.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing the BJP supporters at party headquarters after election results, said people of the capital feel a relief of liberating Delhi from ‘AAP-da’.
‘Sheesh Mahal’ defeat factor?
Arvind Kejriwal’s ‘sheesh mahal’ or luxurious chief minister residence has been a key factor in the BJP’s poll campaign against the Aam Aadmi Party in the run-up to the Delhi election. The saffron party accused the former Delhi chief minister of building a palace for himself while the poor and those in need were forced to stay in shanties.
Insiders from the BJP claimed that Arvind Kejriwal’s focus on his “self-goal” significantly damaged the chances of AAP’s return to power in the capital. “’Sheesh Mahal’ helped us to easily permeate the message that AAP did not practice what it preached and wasn’t a party of the common man,” a BJP functionary was quoted as saying by The Times of India.
ALSO READ | BJP roars back into Delhi; PM Narendra Modi says end of ‘AAP-da’: 10 election result takeaways
Modi had also in his speech took jibe at the AAP for its ‘mentality’ where it allegedly stopped the expansion of Metros, not letting those staying in shanties get permanent homes, not allowing eligible Delhi residents to get medical insurance under the Ayushman Bharat scheme.
The prime minister also said while the world was struggling to deal with Covid-19, the AAP people were building ‘Sheesh Mahal’.
‘Liquor policy’ setback
Arvind Kejriwal’s reputation was tarnished by liquor policy when the Enforcement Directorate named his party leaders and then him as well in the case over alleged financial irregularities in the excise policy formulated by the AAP government.
It wasn’t long before Delhi lieutenant governor VK Saxena ordered an investigation into the same.
“The liquor policy helped us run an anti-AAP campaign in the jhuggis, especially among women, because alcohol and drug abuse are big problems there,” a BJP functionary was cited by ToI.
Veteran social activist Anna Hazare, with whom Kejriwal was associated for a long time before going into mainstream politics, said that AAP faced electoral losses due to the tainted image of its leadership and the controversies surrounding liquor and money.
“I have been saying for a long time that while contesting elections, the candidate must have character, good ideas, and an unblemished image. But they (AAP) didn’t maintain that. They got tangled in liquor and money – his (Arvind Kejriwal’s) image was dented because of it, and that’s why they are getting fewer votes in the election,” Anna Hazare remarked while speaking to reporters on the Delhi election results.
The activist, once Kejriwal’s mentor, distanced himself from AAP once it was formed in 2012. He further said that politics require allegations to be proved wrong. “The truth will remain the truth.”
New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) Vice Chairman Kuljeet Singh Chahal also said that the victory of the BJP in the capital is a wound on Arvind Kejriwal’s “corruption, Sheesh mahal, liquor scam…”
Chahal said that the public has proved that Kejriwal is corrupt and so are other AAP leaders.
The JP Nadda-led Bharatiya Janata Party is set to form government in the national capital after a 27-year hiatus, winning 48 of the 70 seats in the Delhi assembly elections. The chief ministerial face is yet to be announced, with the state BJP leaders saying that the decision will be made by the top brass of the party.
(With PTI, ANI inputs)