BJP MLA conducts poll on Kejriwal's popularity, move backfires
New Delhi, May 29: BJP MLA Manjinder S Sirsa conducted a poll on Twitter over what people felt about Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, but the move backfired when most of the participants voted in favour of the AAP supremo.
Taking a jibe at Sirsa, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj on Wednesday said it was a good thing that the BJP MLA conducted the poll as it showed that even the supporters of the saffron party wanted to vote for the AAP in next year's Delhi Assembly election.
Sirsa, in the Twitter poll, gave options for or against Kejriwal. As many as 70 per cent favoured the Delhi chief minister in his survey, while 30 per cent voted against him.
Sirsa, however, claimed that the poll was rigged by AAP volunteers.
"Congratulations to AAP IT cell for voting in favour of Kejriwal. If the ground reality was same then the AAP would have won in the Lok Sabha polls," he said in a tweet on Wednesday.
The AAP suffered a crushing defeat in the just-concluded Lok Sabha polls. The party won just one of the over 40 seats it had contested. All the seven AAP candidates lost the poll battle in Delhi.
The Assembly election in Delhi is due early next year.
AAP IT Cell को जीत की बधाई @AnkitLal
— Manjinder S Sirsa (@mssirsa) May 29, 2019
काश ज़मीनी तौर पर भी @ArvindKejriwal पॉपुलर होते वरना LS चुनाव में 70 मे से 48 Asmb सीटो पर AAP तीसरे नंबर पर क्यों आती?
भाड़े के Staff से Twitter poll में वोट करवा के तुम केजरीवाल की नाकामयाबी और दिल्लीवालो का “आप” से ग़ुस्सा छुपा नहीं सकते https://t.co/gVAl7CSg0T
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
