MCD election result: Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP handed capital punishment, says Naidu

Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has been handed a “capital punishment” by the people of Delhi in the civic polls for his “arrogant and confrontational politics”, union minister M Venkaiah Naidu said on Wednesday.

The BJP looked set to sweep the elections to Delhi’s three civic bodies, dealing a body blow to the AAP, which sought to blame Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) for its dismal show. The results are a huge setback for the Delhi chief minister who is struggling to retain the appeal of the five-year-old party that came to power by a sweeping majority in the 2015 assembly elections.

The Union urban development minister said the results indicated that people had picked the “development agenda” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the “disruptive policies “ of Kejriwal.

“He has the mandate to rule Delhi, he went to Varanasi and Punjab. His unwarranted aggression has disillusioned the people of Delhi and they have given him capital punishment,” said Naidu.

He dismissed the AAP’s allegations that EVMs used for the Delhi polls were tampered with.

“He (Kejriwal) is not getting the mood of the nation,” said Naidu. “His mandate was to be in Delhi, he became over ambitious and people in Delhi punished him. His confrontation with the Centre, personal allegations against the PM, negative politics etc has been rejected by the people.”

Naidu, who also holds the information and broadcasting portfolio, said the AAP despite its stunning mandate in Delhi in 2015 did not deliver. He said the party did not question the efficacy of EVMs when the Delhi assembly polls were conducted in which BJP was routed.

“AAP has paid a heavy price for its arrogance and misplaced priorities. They have not even learnt a lesson from today’s drubbing and are still blaming EVMs,” Naidu said.