AAP sharpens strategy for Guj polls

NEWDELHI: There are a number of reasons why the Aam Aadmi Party has finally decided to enter the electoral fray in Gujarat.

But trying to form the next government is not one of them. And this shows the party is wisening up and learning from its losses. The party has just declared 21 seats in the state where it will field candidates. The eventual number will be close to 50, leaders say.

AAP has its eyes set on the next Lok Sabha polls and assembly polls in states such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka that precede the general election.

By making a limited foray into Gujarat, the AAP brass wants to keep its flock together in the state. Pulling out would have meant disappointing the cadres to the extent of losing a sizeable portion.

Also, its bargaining position in a future coalition will be decided by the number of seats AAP can win in the Lok Sabha elections. “Whether opposition parties will come together or not, that is arithmetic.

That is also necessary in electoral politics but a churning is taking place.

The coming election will not be opposition versus BJP. It will be BJP versus the rest of the country,” Delhi chief minister and AAP national convenor Kejriwal had said at Congress leader Manish Tewari’s book launch last fortnight.

AAP and its tallest leader are beginning to realise and profess that politics is the art of the possible. The party believes it can cash in on the anti-incumbency against the ruling BJP there, target specific groups -- like the Dalits, Muslims, farmers and Patidars -- and poll enough votes to stay in contention for being a national party.

To be able to focus on Gujarat, it has decided to stay away from Himachal Pradesh, where elections will be held in November.

“Contesting Gujarat will help the AAP shed its image of an urban governance party. If it feels it can attract certain sections of voters, it should test the waters in the elections,” says political analyst Abhay Dubey of Centre for the Study of Developing Societies , a Delhi-based advocacy group.