The BSP czarina, who was wondering aloud about why Punjab was not stolen, but UP was, seems to have gone relatively silent, unable to mobilise any sympathisers to her conspiracy theories. But not Arvind Kejriwal. As the municipal elections approach, his rhetoric is getting shriller, betraying a sense of nervousness that is not expected of a Chief Minister who controls 67 of Delhi’s 70 Assembly seats.
Hearing them speak, you will not be blamed for thinking that you have been transported to some banana republic where tinpot dictators hold sham elections, and governments formed, unless they are formed by the Opposition, do not have any legitimacy.
None of these parties made the remarkable discovery of villainous EVMs destroying their votes when the election process was going on. The cacophony started on result day, as the states started sliding out of their reach. It was almost as if the words “sore losers” were invented for them. Ever since, attempts are being made to manufacture a scandal. The Election Commission of India may be sloth-like in conducting elections, stretching almost every exercise to over a month. But accusing it of conniving with the powers-that-be to rig elections on a mass scale is pure canard—throwing mud in the hope that some of it will stick on someone, somewhere. If this be the level of discourse in the Opposition space, is it a wonder that voters think twice before reposing their faith in them?
It’s a cynical undermining of a democratic process if aspersions are being cast on EVMs deliberately.
Why criticise the Election Commission for making the “political” statement that Kejriwal needs to introspect why he lost? That’s exactly what Kejriwal needs to do—introspect. The truth is, in both Punjab and Goa, AAP’s message and messenger were not strong enough to make voters entrust their respective states in the hands of a regional party, which did not have local roots. Even then, AAP came a creditable second in Punjab, a state that has been traditionally a two-party bastion. But to be in power in Punjab, AAP’s votes need to acquire a critical mass, for which the groundwork was missing this time. As for Goa, it was clearly a case of extreme overreach, as else the party would not have lost its deposit in 38 of the state’s 39 seats. Elections are fought with “boots on the ground”. Media and social media hype can help, but only up to a limited point. The problem starts when political parties start believing in the hype. This writer had witnessed in Varanasi in 2014 how AAP did not have the organisation to field even one volunteer per booth in that constituency, but seriously believed that Kejriwal had a chance to win the seat against Narendra Modi, because that was what a large section of the Delhi media was wishing for and was talking about.
It is understandable that AAP needs to make a lot of noise, especially after Punjab and Goa. It cannot make its volunteers run on empty. It also has to assure its voters that it is a credible political force to reckon with. But certainly there are better ways of doing this than casting aspersions on the electoral process. It’s cynical if Kejriwal and his comrades are doing this deliberately. And delusional if they actually believe that the elections were stolen from them—in the process, they are doing the greatest disservice to themselves, for this amounts to living in a bubble so far removed from reality that it is pitiable.
Something else needs to be mentioned here. Ahead of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections, the buzz on the ground is that things may not be so rosy for AAP this time, unlike in the 2015 Assembly elections. Some sections of voters are apparently disenchanted with Kejriwal and are looking at other options. The BJP also is not too badly placed. So what was expected to be a sweep for AAP, may become a contest. Kejriwal knows that EVMs cannot be abandoned before the Delhi municipal elections of 23 April, which is less than three weeks from now. In the “unlikely” scenario of AAP losing the MCD elections, is Kejriwal readying ground for blaming any possible defeat on the EVMs? Well, as long as he rediscovers the merits of the EVM if he emerges victorious.