Chandigarh: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest is being seen in Punjab political circles as a development presenting a mix of prospects and hurdles for Bhagwant Mann.
Given that the entire top leadership of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi is behind bars, Punjab chief minister Mann is in an unenviable position where he is left without any command or guidance.
Kejriwal’s pointsman in Punjab, Raghav Chadha, has also been prolonging his stay abroad, much to the dismay of his party colleagues, but this has only given more autonomy to Mann in terms of running the government and the party in Punjab.
Mann rushed to Delhi Friday to stand in solidarity with Kejriwal’s family.
Addressing a press conference after meeting the family, Mann said he would be taking up any role the party leadership bestowed him with.
He added that he had been accompanying Kejriwal to attend the various meetings of the INDIA bloc and would continue to do so. Apart from Punjab, Mann said, he would also go to other states to campaign for the INDIA bloc candidates.
While some political experts see it both as a challenge and an opportunity for Mann, others warn that his taking over the party will benefit the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
Some opposition leaders even predict the implosion of Punjab’s AAP unit while others have demanded a probe into the state’s excise policy, which they say is a replica of the Delhi excise policy under CBI and Enforcement Directorate investigation.
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‘Grip of Centre bound to tighten’
In Punjab, AAP leaders view Kejriwal’s arrest as a “vendetta politics”.
AAP MLA from Amritsar Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, who has been openly critical of Mann wrote on his Facebook page that Kejriwal’s arrest was a result of vendetta politics.
However, he added that though he wanted to stand in solidarity with Kejriwal, he was in no position to offer any help because the party had not strengthened him enough to be of any use in such a crisis.
“Those you strengthened are not going to stand by you. It is unfortunate that many of those you considered close to you are happy with the development. But they will make sure that they do the drama of a protest in your support, which I can’t, but I stand with you in this battle of truth,” wrote Singh.
According to Professor Manjit Singh, former head of the Department of Political Science, Panjab University Chandigarh, 10 years ago, when Mann entered the Lok Sabha with three other MPs making their debut in electoral politics, no one could have imagined that he would elbow everybody out and leave no option with the party high command but to make him the chief minister of the state.
“Every leader of substance in AAP Punjab, including Sucha Singh Chhotepur, Dr Dharamvira Gandhi, H.S. Phoolka, Sukhpal Singh Khaira and Gurpreet Ghuggi were made to leave the party. If Mann wants, it is what will happen in AAP at the centre too where he will elbow others out,” he told ThePrint.
“An environment could be created in the AAP that there would be no choice left but to make Mann lead the party,” he added.
The professor also highlighted that, given the alleged closeness between Mann and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, “there is also a possibility that the BJP might want to use Mann to their advantage”.
Meanwhile, Jatinder Singh, a former political science professor at Punjabi University, Patiala, told ThePrint that in Kejriwal’s absence, Mann will get to play a larger role in the AAP at the national level because he is the CM of a full-fledged state and his campaigning across India would be essential to showcase the party’s model of governance.
“In my opinion, beyond being a campaigner in other states, Mann has little scope to emerge as a national leader in AAP. Unlike leaders of other state parties, who are looked upon as someone who can hold a position of national responsibility with maturity, Mann has not evolved into a leader of that stature,” he told ThePrint.
Moreover, in the context of Punjab, Kejriwal’s arrest would not make much of a difference, asserted Professor Jatinder.
“Kejriwal was not expected to play a major role as a campaigner in the state. The initial craze that the people of Punjab have had for AAP is now over and they look upon AAP as just another political party,” he said.
“It is widely believed that there is a constant interference of Kejriwal and other AAP leaders in Delhi in the governance of Punjab. Now, that perception can easily be shed. But Mann still has to live with the perception that he is also controlled at the Centre by the Union home minister. With Kejriwal gone, the grip of the Centre is bound to tighten,” added the Professor.
Professor Harjeshwar Singh of the Department of History, Sri Guru Gobind Singh College, Chandigarh, said that with Kejriwal’s arrest, almost the entire top AAP leadership in Delhi is currently decimated.
“With Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and Satyendar Jain behind bars, and Raghav Chadha absent from the political scene, Mann’s position in the party is strengthened,” he told ThePrint.
“He (Mann) now remains free to assert his will in Punjab. As the party’s only charismatic leader and vote catcher, AAP’s dependence upon him becomes more acute in the election season in Punjab, Delhi and other parts,” added Professor Harjeshwar.
“He can use this opportunity to further strengthen his position in the party in Punjab by giving tickets to his favourites as he has already done in the eight seats declared so far. He can also use the free hand by admitting his favourites in the government by limiting the influence of Delhi leadership,” he added.
Echoing him, Colonel J.S. Gill (Retired), who was closely associated with the AAP for several years since 2014, said Kejriwal being in jail will enhance Mann’s position in the party.
The circumstances that have emerged can be seen both as an opportunity and a challenge for Mann, he highlighted.
“The opportunity is to position himself as a leader of the party nationally. The challenge is that whatever decisions he takes regarding Punjab, especially in the pre-election months, will solely be his responsibility and he cannot blame the central leadership for any wrong decision. Now, no one can say that the party’s leadership in Delhi is interfering in Mann’s work,” he explained.
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Opposition reactions
The Opposition leaders in the state, meanwhile, are floating conspiracy theories.
“There is no doubt in my mind that Mann is playing in the hands of the BJP not just now but for a long time. Kejriwal’s arrest during the elections is clearly aimed at easing him out so that Mann can take over the party,” Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia told ThePrint.
SAD chief and Ferozepur MP Sukhbir Badal posted on the social media platform ‘X’ that “it was the end of the long rope for Kejriwal.”
End of the long rope ! @ArvindKejriwal had been behaving as a law unto himself. He was cocking a snook at the law of the land and was treating it as a joke, defying all civilised norms and legal requirements.
The scam in which he is involved was replicated in Punjab by him in… pic.twitter.com/dAJGI9OdO0
— Sukhbir Singh Badal (@officeofssbadal) March 21, 2024
Meanwhile, Congress leaders in the state believe that there was a real possibility of the Punjab unit of the AAP imploding in the wake of Kejriwal’s arrest.
“Very few leaders in the AAP trust Mann and will not accept his leadership especially when the Delhi unit has destabilised,” Congress leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira told ThePrint.
The BJP leaders in the state highlighted the concerns regarding the Punjab excise policy.
Addressing a press conference Friday, state BJP chief Sunil Jakhar said his party would demand a probe into the Punjab excise policy and give a representation to the Election Commission Saturday. The Delhi excise policy was replicated word for word in Punjab, he alleged.
“Hours before Kejriwal’s arrest, the Punjab chief minister was singing songs and enjoying with his friends in Chandigarh. Even after his arrest, all he did was tweet a single sentence opposing the arrest. Raghav Chadha, who at one point was interfering in the day-to-day working of the government in Punjab, very conveniently went off to the UK where his tweet says that he has been moving around and has no medical emergency as claimed,” added Jakhar.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)
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