Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has been criticised for not questioning the police over its handling of Delhi riots. He announced Rs 1 crore compensation for the family of IB officer Ankit Sharma killed in violence, while the kin of other deceased will get Rs 10 lakh. The AAP government has also received flak for giving permission to prosecute Kanhaiya Kumar in sedition case.
ThePrint asks: Delhi riot, Kanhaiya: Is Kejriwal turning majoritarian after polls or being opportunistic?
Kejriwal always fights Centre for rights of state govt, but behaves opposite when it comes to people’s rights
Former president, Delhi Congress
We have known Arvind Kejriwal for sitting on dharna to oppose the prime minister or being aggressive for many frivolous matters. When it comes to the rights of the state government, he is always fighting against the central government, but when it comes to the rights of the people and controlling violence in the city, he behaves totally opposite.
I have always maintained that he is the B-team of the BJP. This is not a recent phenomenon. Even before the Delhi election, he supported the BJP on many critical issues, including the dilution of Article 370. He also supported the BJP during the election of Rajya Sabha vice-chairman. He is here to cut out the Congress’ vote share and help the BJP.
The timing of giving sanction to prosecute Kanhaiya Kumar in the sedition case also indicates that he is trying to help the BJP. The case was under his domain and he could have said no.
As far as his reaction to Delhi riots is concerned, he should have acted as an administrator of the state. After the 2012 Delhi gangrape, Sheila Dikshit ji immediately opened a helpline number and started social outreach programmes. He could have done that, along with organising peace marches and calling an all-party meeting. But he failed miserably, which shows a grave lapse in his administrative capacity.
Kejriwal is getting sandwiched between the Centre and the expectations of the people
AAP MLA and Advocate
Arvind Kejriwal has been the same. But when he is in power, his first priority is to put things in control and not enter into reckless negotiations. When he earlier used to question Amit Shah and the BJP, people used to say that since he is in power, he should handle things on his own. Now they are saying the opposite.
Kejriwal did his best to bring in the help of the police and Home Minister Amit Shah but nothing works. The BJP doesn’t seem to be in a mood to promote any attempt that can bring peace in Delhi. Their bias is duly reflected in their approach towards their own leaders who were primarily responsible for spreading violence in Delhi. The way they interfered with the judiciary speaks volumes about their intention to bring peace in Delhi. Amit Shah has not gone even once to the riot-hit area or said anything on the violence when it is exclusively his jurisdiction. Kejriwal is getting sandwiched between the two – the Centre and the expectations of the people.
I have been with him. He has been awake every night. He has been personally monitoring what is happening on the ground. He was hell bent on going to the riot-hit area on 24 February but was stopped by the central government officials. Kanhaiya Kumar case is only procedural. In fact, he thanked the Delhi government for sanctioning the case for a speedy process. But as a lawyer, I can tell you that the case is so weak that it will fall flat on its face.
Kejriwal is an ultimate political chameleon. He can change ideologies, allies with convenience
Before the Delhi election, Kejriwal was doing the balancing act. His MLA Amanatullah Khan was seen sharing the stage with Sharjeel Imam. Just before the election, Manish Sisodia supported Shaheen Bagh protests. But Kejriwal maintained a balance and very passively said that nobody should face any inconvenience. He plays the cop- good, bad and ugly as is politically convenient. The Delhi CM wanted the Muslim votes but at the same time didn’t want to appear anti-Hindu.
The Kanhaiya Kumar file has been with the Delhi government for the longest time. With Kejriwal realising that the tide has turned against him and his communal politics is being exposed, he decided to give sanction to the sedition case. When his own Councillor Tahir Hussain was suspected to be involved in the Delhi riots, he said that he should be given stringent punishment if found guilty.
It is not a surprise to me. He plays both ways. When we were together in AAP, we used to describe him as “the expedientist” or “the presentist”. He is a master of political expediency. Whatever suits him in the present, he will go for it. He is an ultimate political chameleon never seen before. He can change ideologies, allies, anything. Nothing within him is consistent.
He is not the Arvind Kejriwal we all knew. He is now a politician for whom votes matter more than human lives
Former AAP member
I can’t imagine Arvind Kejriwal being communal or pursuing majoritarian politics but can’t deny that he has been trying to be too clever by half. He is being opportunistic.
During the Delhi election, Kejriwal tried to usurp RSS/BJP’s agenda of Hindutva but without the hate element. Reciting Hanuman Chalisa and visiting temples was a reflection of that. He refused to visit Shaheen Bagh in an attempt to be not seen with Muslims because that would have given the BJP a handle to paint him anti-Hindu and pro-Muslim.
Kejriwal again did not want to be seen to be opposed to a narrative that had projected anti-CAA movement as anti-national.
In present-day India, Right-wingers have succeeded in convincing a section of Hindus that being anti-minority is true nationalism. This Hindutva-fuelled nationalism has excluded Muslims. And Kejriwal being a maverick sensed it long before Delhi election.
During riots, he was advised by his cronies not to visit riot-affected areas because that might annoy a section of his Hindu supporters. He knows Muslims have no option but to support him because he is the only one who can defeat the BJP in Delhi.
It was a short-sighted approach. He forgot that there are certain universal values that he, as the CM, has to pursue. His visit would have put pressure on the police administration, and many lives could have been saved.
He is no longer the Arvind Kejriwal we all knew. He is now a politician for whom votes matter more than human lives. What a fall!
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By Unnati Sharma, journalist at ThePrint