AAP opens account in J&K, Mehraj Malik wins from Doda
What's the story
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has registered its first win in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.
The party's candidate Mehraj Malik defeated Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s Gajay Singh Rana by a margin of 4,538 votes in the Doda constituency.
The win is a major milestone for Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP as it expands its national footprint beyond Delhi, Punjab and Gujarat.
Twitter Post
Kejriwal congratulates Malik on big win
डोडा से आम आदमी पार्टी के उम्मीदवार मेहराज मलिक द्वारा बीजेपी को हराकर शानदार जीत हासिल करने के लिए बहुत बहुत बधाई। आप बहुत अच्छा चुनाव लड़े।
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) October 8, 2024
पांचवें राज्य में MLA बनने पर पूरी आम आदमी पार्टी को बधाई।
Party growth
AAP's national expansion strategy gains momentum
The AAP's win in Jammu and Kashmir is also likely to boost the party's confidence as it gears up for assembly elections in Jharkhand and Maharashtra.
This comes after their failed attempt in the Haryana assembly election where none of their candidates won in any of the 90 seats.
Despite this, AAP Haryana president Sushil Gupta had remained hopeful about future prospects.
Political stance
AAP Haryana president calls for BJP's removal from power
Following the Haryana election results, Gupta said he wanted the "corrupt and arrogant" BJP to be ousted from power.
"We want the BJP to be ousted from the state. Whoever forms the government, this corrupt and arrogant BJP should be ousted from power there," he said.
Gupta's statement highlights AAP's staunch opposition to the BJP in Haryana despite their own electoral woes.
Alliance assessment
Gupta refrains from commenting on failed AAP-Congress alliance
Gupta also spoke about the failed alliance talks between AAP and Congress in Haryana.
He avoided making any personal judgments saying it was up to the high command of both parties to assess the matter.
"We made a positive effort at that time. We forged an alliance at the national level and we brought BJP to crutches," he added, hinting a successful alliance could have changed election results drastically.