While many from the AAP and anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare’s camp describe their first meeting after Arvind Kejriwal became Delhi Chief Minister as “just a courtesy call”, insiders in the party said it was an opportunity to “bridge differences and misunderstandings between the two”.
The 20-minute meeting came about at a special convention of Gandhian activists from across the country on “2014 Lok Sabha elections and the role of Gandhians”.
Mr. Hazare, considered a prominent Gandhian himself, was in the Capital to attend the convention that was organised for discussions on the proposal for extending support to the one-year-old party which according to the invitation letter “broke people’s indifference and despair and gave a positive hope to them and also brought about an organisational basis to it”.
The activists who played a vital role in organising the convention told The Hindu that Mr. Hazare’s participation in the convention, which discussed AAP’s electoral potential on the national platform, was in itself a “first major step” to help sort out differences between Anna and Kejriwal. “It would further strengthen the AAP,” said one of them.
“Mr. Hazare came to attend the convention knowing full well that there would be a discussion on the political potential of the AAP and the role therein expected from the Gandhians like us as far as supporting the party’s cause is concerned,” he said.
“The country at several levels is going through turbulent times where the 2014 Lok Sabha elections seem to be heading towards a political tsunami. Under these circumstances, the rise of a new political player — the Aam Aadmi Party — has created a new wave. The AAP got a big political success in Delhi. It has formed a non-conventional government and is also doing things differently,” says the invitation letter for the convention.
A senior AAP leader told The Hindu that misunderstanding was created between Aannaji and Arvind because of the go-betweens. “We are happy that they met. It’s a big healing of the misunderstanding between them,” he said.
