NEW DELHI — The AAP will not tie up with any party in the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections, former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Sunday, setting the stage for a triangular fight for the 70-seat House around February.
“There will be no alliance in Delhi,” said Kejriwal at a press conference here.
Kejriwal’s decision not to have an alliance comes close to Delhi Congress President Devender Yadav’s announcement of going solo in the elections.
The two parties had entered into a seat-sharing pact for Lok Sabha polls but had failed to win even a single seat out of the seven seats which were won by the BJP.
No alliance between the AAP and the Congress in Assembly elections also means that the final tally of the AAP and the BJP in the polls will depend on the Grand Old Party’s ability to win back its voters who have deserted it and backed Kejriwal’s outfit in the past two elections. The Congress has not been able to win even one seat in the past two elections.
Earlier, Kejriwal hit out at the allegedly deteriorating law and order situation in Delhi, claiming that in the last two to three years the law and order situation has worsened as people are living under constant fear.
He alleged by arresting AAP MLA Naresh Balyan, for suspected links with gangsters, the Central government has sent a signal to gangsters that they can operate fearlessly.
Describing Balyan himself as a victim of crime, Kejriwal said he had also got extortion calls and had given a complaint to police but no action was taken.
“By arresting Balyan, the Central government sent the message that if you complain against gangsters you will be arrested,” he said.
Demanding immediate steps to improve law and order in Delhi, Kejriwal said, “I did not raise the issue earlier, I thought this is not something to do politics on. But now the situation is really bad.”
Kejriwal, who was attacked with a liquid during a march on Saturday by a suspected out-of-job bus marshal, said getting him attacked would not improve law and order in the city.
“Rather than tackling the problem, I am being attacked and our party’s MLAs are being arrested,” said Kejriwal.
He said he was hoping that in his attempts to highlight the law and order problem, Union Home Minister Amit Shah would ask the police to arrest gangsters and rapists but that did not happen. –IANS
