Political Science Project Laksh Kumar

AAM AADMI PARTY (Regional party of Delhi) 01

Index Introduction......................................................................................................2 Formation......................................................................................................... 3 Ideology of AAP................................................................................................5 Delhi Assembly Election 2015..........................................................................6 Delhi Assembly Election 2020..........................................................................7 Elections in 2022..............................................................................................9 Introduction Aam Aadmi Party(AAP) is a political party in India, founded on 26 November 2012. It styles itself as an alternative to the mainstream Bhartiya Janata Party(BJP) and Indian National Congress(INC). It currently runs the state government in Delhi, having held a majority in the Delhi Legislative Assembly since the 2015 election, limiting BJP to a few seats and pushing Congress out entirely. It retained its 02

supermajority in the 2020 elections. Party Symbol Arvind Kejriwal (Leader of AAP) Formation The AAP has its origins in the India against Corruption movement. Massive anti- corruption protests and strikes in 2011were initiated by a well known social activist Anna Hazare in response to exposure of unprecedented financial scams and corruption by erstwhile UPA government. The aim was to press the government to enact a strong and effective Lokpal through a Jan Lokpal Bill. Hazare was supported by a clutch of activists and professionals which became popularly known as Team Anna. Team Anna 03

also included a civil-servant turned activist Arvind Kejriwal. Hazare had wanted to keep the movement politically neutral but Kejriwal considered that direct involvement in politics was necessary because attempts to obtain progress regarding the Jan Lokpal Bill through talks with existing political parties had, in his opinion, achieved nothing. Hazare and Kejriwal agreed on 19 September 2012 that their differences regarding a role in politics were irreconcilable. Kejriwal had support from some anti-corruption movement activists, such as Prashant Bhushan and Shanti Bhushan, but was opposed by others such as Kiran Bedi and Santosh Hedge. On 2 04

October, Kejriwal announced that he was forming a political party and that he intended the formal launch to be on 26 November, coinciding with the anniversary of India's adoption of its Constitution in 1949. Ideology of AAP At the time of formation, the AAP said that the promise of equality and justice that forms a part of the Constitution of India and of its preamble has not been fulfilled and that the Independence of India has replaced enslavement to an oppressive foreign power with that to a political elite. It claimed that the common people of India remain unheard and unseen except when it suits politicians. The AAP's goal is to reverse the way that government accountability operates, and the party takes an interpretation of the Gandhian concept of swaraj as a tenet. It believes that through swaraj, the government 05

will be directly accountable to the people instead of higher officials. The swaraj model lays stress on self-governance, community building, and decentralization. Delhi Assembly Election 2015 Election Year Overall Seats Seats Won Votes Contested 2015 4,838,397 69 67 / 70 The Delhi state assembly elections for the Sixth Legislative Assembly of Delhi were held on 7 February 2015, as declared by the Election Commission of India. The Aam Aadmi Party scored a landslide victory by winning a majority of 67 of the 70 seats. The BJP was able to win 3 seats and the Congress party saw all its candidates lose. Kejriwal became the Chief Minister for the second time. The AAP had started campaigning in Delhi in November 2014 and declared candidates for all 70 seats. 06

Delhi Assembly Election 2020 Election Year Overall Seats Seats Won Votes Contested 62 / 70 2020 4,974,522 70 Voting for the Delhi Assembly elections took place on 8 February 2020, following vehement campaigns run by the major political parties contesting the election. The counting of votes and subsequent 07

announcement of results happened on 11 February. The Aam Aadmi Party retained the government as the party won 62 out of 70 seats. Arvind Kejriwal became the Chief Minister of Delhi for the third consecutive time. The party's vote share was 53.5%, according to the results. 08

Elections in 2022 In January 2021, Arvind Kejriwal confirmed that AAP will contest in 6 state elections in 2022 - Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Punjab. 09