A day before the arrest of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, THE WEEK posed this question to the party’s national convenor Sandeep Pathak in an interview, “Is there a plan B if Arvind Kejriwal is arrested?”. The Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab and the party’s national general secretary, Pathak replied, “There is no plan B, there is no plan A. The only plan is to fight for the people of this country and if the CM is arrested the people will fight on his behalf.”
For all said and done, the AAP does have a plan. And, so far, they are sticking to it by vociferously accusing the BJP-led central government of decimating democracy by unconstitutionally arresting the elected chief minister of Delhi. One of the first reactions of Kejriwal’s trusted lieutenant Atishi to the late-night arrest was “he (Kejriwal) will continue to run the government from jail”.
Abhay Dubey, professor at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, says, “I think the AAP worked out their plan well in advance. They (the AAP) knew that sooner or later Arvind Kejriwal would be arrested. Therefore, they got the survey done in which people preferred Kejriwal to run the government even if he goes to jail.” “Legally, you cannot be stopped from being the CM even inside the jail. However, it will be awkward,” he said.
The impracticality of such a move, indeed, necessitated an overhaul of the strategy. It is becoming increasingly important for the AAP to have a plan B as well.
Anupam Pathak, assistant professor, Ramjas College, Delhi University said, “Not only is it impractical, their strategy is now going against their own ideology, which has always been against politicians who are facing corruption charges and allegations. I think there is a need that they should change their strategy.”
Senior functionaries said that talks on a possible replacement for the arrested Delhi CM have already started within the party. The probable names doing the rounds are Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal and senior ministers Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj. However, sources said that if Sunita Kejriwal, also a former IRS officer, is chosen to take her husband’s place, she will have to win the elections within six months.
As per the rule, an individual who is not a member of the legislature can be considered for the chief minister’s post provided they get themselves elected to the state legislature within six months from the date of their appointment, failing which, they would cease to be the chief minister. “She is not a political face and it may be difficult for her to manage both the government and the party. Winning the election in six months will also be a challenge,” the sources added.
Besides AAP, Kejriwal’s arrest has stirred the overall political landscape in the national capital. The seismic development has also given fodder to the INDIA alliance, which, so far, had seemed fragmented on several issues, especially seat-sharing. “We are appealing to everyone (including INDIA alliance) to unite against such dictatorship. Arvind Kejriwal is not just a chief minister but he is an idea and an inspiration of the people of Delhi and the country,” said Delhi Minister Gopal Rai.
Given the precedence of BRS leader K. Kavitha, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in Hyderabad, and was denied bail by the lower court, it seems unlikely that bail will be granted to the Delhi CM. In such a case, all parties will have to reorient their strategies including the BJP.
If Kejriwal does not resign and the AAP continues with the strategy of his governing from the jail, the BJP can ask for the governor’s rule on grounds of avoiding a constitutional crisis. If the Delhi CM resigns and the AAP is unable to find a leader who can effectively tread the party and the government through this unprecedented crisis, the option of LG’s rule again becomes applicable. “In both the cases, the ball will be in the BJP’s court to run the national capital till the next assembly elections in 2025, which will also be interesting to see,” adds Dubey.
