Is Kejriwal Losing The Plot As Confidant Takes Flight?

With a history of close aides departing over similar concerns, Kejriwal’s leadership is increasingly seen as autocratic and disconnected from the party’s foundational values. As the opposition gears up to exploit these vulnerabilities, Kejriwal’s aspirations to rejuvenate AAP with a big win in the upcoming Delhi elections are now clouded by a credibility crisis

It was a shocking Sunday for Aam Aadmi Party supremo and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal after one of his trusted aides, Kailash Gahlot announced giving up the AAP.

All the more distressing for Kejriwal are the reasons put up by Gahlot for resigning from the party. "Challenges from within, to the very values that brought us together to AAP. Political ambitions have overtaken our commitment towards people, leaving many promises unfulfilled," writes Gahlot in his resignation letter.

This submission in the letter has come at a time when Kejriwal aims to make the Delhi Assembly election a kind of referendum on the cases he was arrested for. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he directly asked Delhiites to vote for his party in order to keep him out of jail. The people reacted but gave the BJP all seven seats. Kejriwal, who had aimed to stir emotions with his jail victimhood talk, failed to get the aam aadmi by his side.

On September 15, a Sunday again, he announced that he would resign as Delhi Chief Minister. Two days later he resigned and a few days later made Atishi the new Chief Minister. The aim of the resignation step was to exhibit moral high ground and garner public sympathy.

Kejriwal’s exit as Delhi Chief Minister was supposed to be a masterstroke to be followed by the required buildup by his ministers, leaders and workers. However, even as the momentum could lead to the flight, Gahlot’s resignation has come in handy for the opposition in Delhi politics.

Gahlot was in charge of key portfolios in the State government, including Home, Transport, IT and Women and Child Development. Therefore, when he says that there is something wrong, then Kejriwal is in serious trouble.

Gahlot’s views cannot be brushed aside because he is not a dissatisfied politician. He had all the power after rising quickly in the party hierarchy. He was elected as an MLA in February 2015 and was appointed a Cabinet Minister in 2017.

What Gahlot has mentioned in the letter has been widely known and the BJP has been flagging the issues for long. Whether it is Yamuna River pollution or the charge of ‘Sheesh Mahal’, Gahlot has been candid in presenting his views.

He writes, “…Take for example the YAMUNA, which we had promised to transform into a clean river, but never got around to doing it. Now the Yamuna River is perhaps even more polluted than ever before. Apart from this, now there are many embarrassing and awkward controversies like the 'SHEESHMAHAL', which are now making everyone doubt whether we still believe in being the AAM AADMI.”

Kejriwal has refused to react to Gahlot’s resignation, but AAP leader Durgesh Pathak has said Kailash Gahlot “was being questioned and raided by ED and Income Tax for months…and had no choice”.

How Gahlot’s resignation and charges can impact the AAP prospectus in Delhi politics is something to be seen. The opposition – BJP and the Congress – will surely use his submissions to attack Kejriwal. Gahlot is one among a series of leaders who were close to Kejriwal but moved out for various reasons.

Kejriwal’s ‘style’ of working saw his close friends, like Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan, Kumar Vishwas, Mayank Gandhi and several others, losing favour and finally leaving the party which they had helped to form. These leaders have said that Kejriwal “is autocratic and not democratic” – certainly a quality that does not go with the Mango Man image.

For Kejriwal, who claimed that the party was based on the principles of transparency, most activities have not been so transparent. And the alleged excise police scam case is a pointer to this. The ED, which arrested him in connection with the probe in the alleged case, has called him the ‘kingpin’. And, Gahlot's reasons for leaving as cited in his letter are a pointer to his closed style of working.

Thirteen years ago, he began with the Lokpal movement for an ombudsman to look into complaints of corruption against government officials. But today this former government official and ex-Chief Minister of Delhi is on bail after being in jail on corruption charges.

Years ago, he said, “Without jumping into the system, it will be impossible to clean up the system. We are going to challenge this system.” He did jump into the system but the glitter of power was perhaps too strong and today his image is sullied.

Kejriwal may have plans to get back AAP with a resounding win in the Delhi Assembly elections so as to validate his victimhood, but his close aides are spilling the beans.