The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) announced on Thursday that it will contest the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections independently, without forming an alliance with the Congress. Gopal Rai, AAP's Delhi convenor, clarified that the alliance with Congress was solely for the Lok Sabha elections and will not extend to the state elections scheduled for early 2025.
Rai's statement followed a meeting with AAP's MLAs, where he reiterated that the I.N.D.I.A bloc, formed to challenge the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections, does not pertain to the Delhi Assembly elections. "This is clear from the very first day that the INDIA alliance was formed for Lok Sabha elections. As far as Vidhan Sabha is concerned, no alliance has been formed. AAP will fight elections with its full strength," he stated.
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, both AAP and Congress failed to win any seats in Delhi, with the BJP sweeping all seven constituencies. AAP fielded candidates in four constituencies, while Congress contested the remaining three.
Despite collaborating in the Lok Sabha elections in Delhi, Punjab, and Gujarat under the I.N.D.I.A bloc, AAP and Congress did not form an alliance for the Punjab polls. In Punjab, the Congress emerged stronger, winning seven seats compared to AAP's three, despite AAP being the ruling party in the state.
The Delhi Assembly elections are expected to be held in early 2025. In the 2020 assembly polls, Congress did not win any seats, while AAP secured a dominant victory with 62 out of 70 seats. The BJP managed to win eight seats.
