BJP Rides Arvind Kejriwal’s Friends Turned Foes in Delhi Elections
AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal Image credit X.com
Mayank Gandhi Book in Circulation in Delhi Ahead of Polls
By Amit Kumar
New Delhi, February 7: Mayank Gandhi’s book – AAP & Down – went into circulation in the national capital in the run up to the polls. He was the key aide of Arvind Kejriwal during the hey days of Indian Against Corruption until he parted ways with the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Pollsters have predicted defeat of the Kejriwal-led outfit in the Delhi Assembly elections. Besides Gandhi, Kejriwal’s friend turned foe Swati Maliwal also led frontal attacks on former Chief Minister of Delhi.
Informed sources revealed that Gandhi’s book was part of the key strategy of the Bharataiya Janata Party (BJP) in Delhi to counter Kejriwal appeal among the people. A large number of copes of Gandhi’s book were circulated in the national capital in the run up to the elections, sources said.
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Gandhi also featured on a podcast by former vice president of the BJP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe. He was sharply critical of Kejriwal in his utterances.
The BJP used the copies of the book and audio clips of his interview to amplify party narrative against Kejriwal. Gandhi in his updated version of the book, which had already been launched a few years ago, reiterates his arguments that Kejriwal’s claims of politics of idealism is hollow.
The BJP in the past also employed former friends of Kejriwal to build narrative against Kejriwal. In the 2020 Assembly elections, Kejriwal’s former aide and poet Kumar Vishwas suddenly began giving interviews and television bytes to “expose” the national convenor of the AAP.
The BJP in the Assembly elections rode former AAP leaders and functionaries to gain foothold in the vote base of the Kejriwal-led outfit. The BJP focussed on attacking ‘Brand Kejriwal’ with the help of AAP convenor’s former associates.
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Maliwal, who is currently Rajya Sabha MP from the AAP, was at the forefront of the campaign against Kejriwal. In her last show ahead of the polling, she gathered garbage and dirty waters to bring them to the residence of Kejriwal.
Former political editor of Business Standard Aditi Fadnis in a book review of Gandhi’s AAP & Down wrote that the book mentioned the episode of the alleged assault on Maliwal at the residence of the Delhi Chief Minister to reiterate the previous accusations against Kejriwal. Gandi’s X handle shows him frequently meeting the BJP leaders, including Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
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