Emerging as a mascot of an alternative brand of politics, engineer-turned civil servant Arvind Kejriwal has changed the political discourse to steer his Aam Aadmi Party to power -- a sweet revenge for the activist's fledgling party that was once branded as "mango people in a banana republic".
With his new party making a spectacular debut in the Delhi assembly elections, and the non-sectarian nature of his voter base, the question is naturally being asked: Does Arvind Kejriwal have it in him to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate, no less?
Dismissed as a political greenhorn, engineer-turned-civil servant Arvind Kejriwal has cemented his place in politics with a stunning political debut for his nascent AAP and emerged as a giant killer to sweep Sheila Dikshit out from not only office but also her constituency.
Vice President Hamid Ansari, Aam Admi Party Chief Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi's Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Dev were among the first few to cast their votes in the Delhi assembly election on Wednesday.
The Delhi poll outcome closely mirrors what our Delhi Elections Twitter Impact -- in which we focused on re-tweets about topics that matter to Delhi-ites for the six days ending October 30, 2013 -- showed, that the Delhi Twitterati have overwhelmingly endorsed stuff from BJP and Aam Aadmi Party sources.
Says a senior BJP leader: "If the AAP had Congress or BJP-type polling agents they would have easily got three-fourth majority in Delhi, there is no question about it. It was not Kejriwal or the AAP that got the vote. People went all out with a resolve to defeat what we call 'the system'." Sheela Bhatt reports on how the AAP's cornering of the anti-establishment vote has forced the BJP to rethink its strategy for the Lok Sabha elections.
Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday set the ball rolling for a direct electoral fight against Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit in the coming Delhi assembly elections. At a convention of Aam Aadmi Party workers, Kejriwal also chose to attack the Bharatiya Janata Party, saying the party fielded weak candidates against Dikshit in the previous polls and challenged BJP's Delhi unit chief Vijay Goel to contest against him and Dikshit.
Kejriwal will take oath as chief minister for a third term in a "Delhi-specific" ceremony, AAP's Delhi unit convener Gopal Rai said.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal will contest the Delhi assembly elections scheduled later this year but it was yet to be decided from which constituency he will fight the poll.
AAP alleged that EVMs are being tampered with to favour BJP.
Once you analyse the data, you will realise the state government wants to take credit for achievements that do not belong to it.
Winning an election may be a breeze for the BJP but the aftermath of victory isn't always painless.
A total of 16 turncoats were in the poll fray -- nine fielded by the Aam Aadmi Party, three by the Congress and four by the BJP.
Riding on its development agenda, the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party was on Tuesday set for a resounding victory in the Delhi assembly elections to retain power for a third term. Here's how leaders reacted to the impending victory.
Arvind Kejriwal's new party, which is likely to be announced next week, will have youths in leadership position and will enter electoral fray with Delhi polls before contesting all seats in next Lok Sabha elections.
Shazia Ilmi, one of the founder members of the Aam Aadmi Party, is understood to be considering resigning from the party.
Newly appointed president of the Delhi unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party Vijay Goel tells Gyan Varma that the party would replicate Gujarat's development model in Delhi if it comes to power
Before taking the plunge in 2014 general elections, Team Anna is likely to test political waters first in next year's Delhi Assembly polls while giving a miss to elections in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat.
The AAP chief lauded the voters in Delhi and tweeted his thanks.
Top Team Anna members have rejected criticism that Anna Hazare was forced to adopt the path of political alternative and claimed that he was fully involved in the decision to go political.
Noted danseuse Mallika Sarabhai will be joining the Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday, sources close to her said.
'We wanted to come out with accurate figure rather than speculating. This is not uncommon and we are not late
Voter turnout was 67.47 per cent in 2015 assembly election. The voting percentage was 57.04 till 6 pm deadline, and rose to 61.46 per cent as those in queues at polling stations were allowed to vote, poll officials said, adding it may increase further.
Wishing to remain unbiased, President Pranab Mukherjee did not cast his vote
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal is all set to file his nomination in the capital for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections in Delhi on Tuesday.
The 54-year-old leader had taken over as the Congress's Delhi unit chief four years ago, after the party lost the 2015 assembly elections.
'Till now, many political parties indulged in Muslim appeasement.' 'This is one experiment, successfully carried out by the AAP, in indulging in Hindu appeasement.'
'Modi gave the slogan of 'Jai Shri Ram' just four days ahead of polling for the Delhi Assembly. Will be happy if (the number) goes up by two-four seats with the help of Shri Ram,' the Shiv Sena said.
Arvind Kejriwal provided with Z-plus security.
The Centre has directed the Delhi police to provide security to all candidates, including those from Aam Admi Party, contesting the Delhi assembly elections.
The Congress on Friday pitted former Delhi minister Kiran Walia against Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal from the prestigious New Delhi constituency in February 7 assembly polls.
The CM said that his party will not 'abuse anyone'. He appealed to people to vote for AAP only if they think his govt has done good work. Single-phase elections in Delhi will take place on February 8.
Former union minister for child and women development and senior Congress Party leader Krishna Tirath on Monday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party after meeting party chief Amit Shah.
'In its short life, AAP has distinguished itself in many, many, governance spheres.' 'But party democracy is not one of them,' notes Aditi Phadnis.
'In today's situation, it is not going to help anyone's case if they try to politically contest with the BJP on ideological issues.' 'Instead, it is best is to swim along the tide, present the more acceptable face of the cultural Hindu, but not be a political Hindu as the BJP or Mr Modi is.'
'Delhi voters have liked the politics of performance over noisy rhetoric and empty promises,' points out Vijaya Pushkarna.
Arvind Kejriwal is poised to return to power with a simple majority. Even if the BJP wins 20 to 25 seats, it will be seen as a victory, says R Rajagopalan.
Why did RA&W hire a man with a questionable record, wonders David Devadas.
Malhotra, the deputy leader of BJP parliamentary party in Lok Sabha, conveyed his decision to Speaker Somnath Chatterjee through a one-line letter, party sources said.
Poonam, the wife of cricketer-turned-politician Kirti Azad, was lobbying for Patparganj constituency in east Delhi. She came to the BJP central headquarters and submitted her resignation after the seat was alloted to Nakul Bharadwaj, a former student's leader
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