AAP handles crisis with Band-Aid
It is an irony that after such a spectacular victory in the Delhi Assembly elections, the Aam Aadmi Party has plunged into a serious crisis within a month, re-establishing the bitter truth that shorn of its façade, it is like any other political party in India—its leaders driven by greed, insecurities and wheeling dealing.
The outcry for action against two of the tallest leaders of the party--ideologue Yogendra Yadav and leading lawyer Prashant Bhushan--for questioning the dictatorial attitude of the party’s Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, especially from those who are keen to be in the good books of Kejriwal, brought the internal fight into the open.
The reconstitution of a key committee of the AAP—the Political Affairs Committee --has achieved the purpose that Kejriwal was seeking to achieve. By submitting his resignation as party convenor, Kejriwal played the clever card of virtually forcing the two thorns in his flesh--Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan-- to offer to quit the PAC.
As limited sops, while before Prashant Bhushan has been dangled the carrot of the new Lok Pal, Yogendra Yadav will be given charge of the Kisan Morcha. They will no longer be in the core group of the party, in which they were, at least in name, members of the Political Affairs Committee. Whether they will accept, with their wings clipped is a moot point. Their objections to Kejriwal concentrating too much power in his hands have been brushed aside.
As it stands, it appears unlikely that the fire has been doused for good. Even if the duo decides not to escalate things now, its rift with Kejriwal may well resurface after some time when the euphoria among AAP cadres over the Delhi victory begins to subside.
On the eve of the Delhi elections, octogenarian Shanti Bhushan, himself a lawyer of great eminence and father of Prashant, had expressed open disenchantment with Kejriwal’s increasingly self-centred attitude and had counselled him against concentrating all power in himself.
But looking at the scale of the victory, Shanti Bhushan thought it prudent not to rake up the issue again.
When son Prashant and Yogendra Yadav took up the issue, Kejriwal was riding high horses. Indeed, the timing was not right for them to escalate matters. Senior Bhushan realised this with the wisdom that age brings and advised the duo to back off. But it was too late and vested interests in the party, including Ashutosh and Ashish Khaitan, were breathing down their neck.
Instead of taking such well-meaning advice amiss, Kejriwal should have valued such people who call a spade a spade and who shun sycophancy. It is these people who will potentially kept him well-balanced, as he is drawn deeper and deeper into the trappings of power.
The national executive meeting of the party, which was rumoured to be the stage for jettisoning Yogendra Yadav, Shanti Bhushan and Prashant Bhushan, has confirmed everyone’s worst fears.
Some pent-up anger was released, which is as it should have been. But if Kejriwal continues to be overbearing and dictatorial, the stage might be set for a virtual or real split.
At best, the patchwork truce can hold for some time. The more Kejriwal enjoys unrestricted power, the more pronounced will be his downfall as and when it happens.
The party has indeed made far too many reckless promises, which it will find impossible to fulfill. Having raised expectations sky-high, the Kejriwal-led leadership would find it impossible to meet them.
It is too early and unfair yet to pass judgement on the Kejriwal Government in Delhi, but it is a cold reality that the slashing of power tariffs and 20,000 litres of free water per household are steps that have been taken at a heavy cost to the state exchequer. It remains to be seen how long such subsidies can be sustained as a measure of expediency.
It is too far-fetched to bank on the assurance that the party would buy some mines in coal auctions and harness them. It is indeed preposterous to say that Delhi could become self-sufficient in power in the foreseeable future.
The fact of the matter is that the National Capital Region would continue to require power from other states for long.
The Bhushans, especially Shanti Bhushan, has been saying that Kejriwal prefers expediency to unflinching honesty and that his means of raising funds for the party before the Delhi elections were neither transparent nor squeaky clean.
If he becomes Jan Lokpal, he would lend an ear to complaints of financial misdemeanour. Would Kejriwal then act on his recommendations to take action against the perpetrators of those misdemeanours, especially if Kejriwal or his minions were to have their hands in the till?
Likewise, would Yogendra Yadav not use the clout he gains as the Kisan Morcha chief to further his own ambitions to spread his influence in the party? Would his strong ideological moorings not guide him to seek to influence again the direction the party takes? How will the party resolve its dilemma whether to contest elections in other states or not?
The Aam Aadmi Party national executive meeting has only postponed the inevitable clash of ideas. Sooner than later, the contradictions will surface again.