BJP sees bright future as AAP, Cong slug it out

Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 22
A day after AAP was forced to beat a hasty retreat in the National Capital largely due to negative publicity earned by its ‘dharna’ brand of politics, the newbie’s woes mounted thanks to the “racist” deeds of its leaders Kumar Vishwas and Somnath Bharti.

Meanwhile, the BJP gleefully watched the Congress build pressure on ally AAP for action against the duo.

The lead Opposition, which yesterday went to town alleging a Congress-AAP pact behind the standoff, watched -- without adding to it -- as senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh alleged a backroom deal on yesterday’s stand-off and his colleague Sushilkumar Shinde engaged in a slanging match with Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.

With women groups and ally Congress demanding immediate action against Vishwas and Bharti, the BJP is sensing a great political opportunity in letting AAP and the Congress battle it out among themselves without being part of the centrestage.

Party sources say Shinde has managed to open another front with his bete noire -- the Delhi CM -- with his ‘veda’ remark (which apparently means mad or eccentric in Marathi) and there was no need for the BJP to add anything to it and take away the attention from the key protagonists --Kejriwal and Shinde.

In the Congress-AAP tussle, the BJP is sensing better times ahead for the party throughout the country. Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley’s statement today said it all. “The past few days have presented an insight about the emerging political scenario in the country. For us in the BJP, the prospects appear to be encouraging,” he said.

“Traditional critics of the BJP earlier rallied behind the Congress. Now, they seem to have lost hope in it as an instrument that could stop the BJP or Modi. For a brief while, they assumed that the BJP surge would be obstructed by AAP. The Aam Aadmi Party has lent credence to the old saying that a week is too long in politics. It has exhibited unacceptable and irresponsible behaviour,” Jaitley added.

Soon after Kejriwal called off his protest, the BJP had slammed both AAP and the Congress for failing to protect India’s republic. Jaitley’s tweet late last night said that “only an anarchist unaware of the sacrifices made by freedom fighters can undermine Dr Ambedkar’s Constitution and the Republic Day”.

On the Home Minister, Jaitley suggested a compromise between the Congress and AAP. His tweet said: “Sushilkumar Shinde may have saved the Republic Day, but he has weakened the Republic”.

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