The flags of AAP and Congress.
Credit: PTI File Photos
With Assembly elections approaching in Haryana and Delhi, the Congress and the AAP appear to be slowly disengaging themselves from the national-level alliance in the two states by charting their own course and opposing each other.
The Delhi Congress staged protests against the Arvind Kejriwal government over the water crisis in the national capital while the AAP held a meeting of its Haryana workers and decided to hold a rally, which will be attended by AAP supremo's wife Sunita Kejriwal.
Both sides are maintaining that their alliance is at the national level and for the Lok Sabha elections only, a stand that is allowing them to fight against each other in the Assembly elections in Haryana later this year and in Delhi early next year.
In the Lok Sabha elections, the AAP and the Congress entered into seat sharing arrangements in Delhi, Haryana, and Gujarat, while they fought against each other in Assam and Punjab. In Assam, the AAP withdrew from one of the seats it was contesting, while it offered support to Congress candidates in Goa.
The Congress and the AAP have also announced that they may be fighting against each other in both the states.
In Delhi, the local Congress leaders staged 'matka phod' protests in 280 blocks carrying earthen pots on their heads, which they threw on the ground. Delhi Congress chief Devendra Yadav also joined the protests.
Since the 2015 polls, the Congress has not won a single seat in the Assembly though its performance was better than the AAP in the 2019 general elections. In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the AAP and Congress fought as part of an alliance in Delhi, with the former fighting four and the latter three seats.
After an initial analysis of the results, Congress sources said they would have a special focus on the Lok Sabha constituencies where it had performed well. The party has identified around two dozen Assembly seats in these Lok Sabha constituencies where it had performed well.
The Congress assessment is that it has managed to earn the trust of minority and Dalit voters, which could translate into electoral support, especially when the AAP is facing troubles over the arrest and jailing of Chief Minister Kejriwal.
In Haryana, senior AAP functionary Sushil Gupta said the AAP has started preparing for the Haryana Assembly elections.
"Each and every worker of AAP and our top leaders will start the preparations from tomorrow to strengthen our organisation. We will also start preparing for Sunita Kejriwal's rally on June 30. We will soon decide about the place where the rally will be held," he said.