Congress delivers major blow to AAP ahead of UP polls
Former Uttar Pradesh MLAs Shyam Sundar Sharma and Rajat Rakesh Tandon have also joined Congress.
In a setback for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), its chief national spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar joined the Congress on Saturday. She stated that it is essential to prevent the fragmentation of opposition votes in the current political circumstances of the country. Along with Kakkar, former Uttar Pradesh MLA Shyam Sundar Sharma and Rajat Rakesh Tandon also joined the Congress. The Congress shared a video on the social media platform X announcing their entry into the party.
Regarding her decision to join the Congress, Kakkar said that,
she wants to see the Delhi in which she spent her childhood again. She emphasized the need to make the capital green, clean, progressive, and safe. According to her, after spending more than a decade in Indian politics, she is confident that only the Congress can achieve this goal. She also openly praised Rahul Gandhi's leadership.
In a conversation with news agency ANI, Kakkar linked her decision to the struggle against BJP's politics.
She said,
“I am joining the Congress with immense pride. We must not allow the votes to scatter. We have to fight against Gyanesh Kumar and also defeat the regressive politics of the BJP.” Her statement highlighted the need to unite opposition voters and advance the political battle alongside the Congress.
Priyanka Kakkar has been one of the prominent media faces of the Aam Aadmi Party. She was appointed as the chief national spokesperson of the party in April 2023. In this role, she represented the party's stance in public debates and media platforms. Therefore, her joining the Congress is a significant development for the party led by Arvind Kejriwal. However, the details provided do not mention the AAP's response to her decision.
Kakkar joined the Aam Aadmi Party in 2013. Since then, she has held several responsibilities within the organization. She served as the party's observer in Telangana and also worked as the legal head for the South Delhi parliamentary constituency. Additionally, she has been an advisor to Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh. Her professional background is in law. She holds a postgraduate degree in law, LLM, from the University of Pennsylvania in the USA and has been practicing law for nearly two decades.
While taking Congress membership, Kakkar described Rahul Gandhi as a leader who stands firm in difficult circumstances. She stated that despite efforts to humiliate and weaken him, he and the Congress have remained steadfast in their stance. According to Kakkar, the authenticity of the Congress is its soul. She mentioned that based on her experience, she saw that soul in this party, which she did not find in other parties.
Meanwhile, former Uttar Pradesh minister and eight-time MLA from the Mathura's Mant assembly seat, Shyam Sundar Sharma, has now returned to the Congress. At the Congress office in Delhi, former MLA Shyam Sundar Sharma took the party's hand. Upon joining the Congress, former minister Shyam Sundar Sharma made a statement that has garnered significant attention.
Former MLA Shyam Sundar Sharma said that,
“There was a film called Baghban where it says, what is this old man good for, today I say this old man is very useful. He said that he comes from a family of freedom fighters, and when the Tiwari Congress was formed, he mistakenly went along with Tiwari ji. Last time I lost by a narrow margin, politics means service, and this thought only exists within the Congress. People talk about caste and religion, but Rahul Gandhi is the only leader who talks about humanism.”
He praised Rahul Gandhi's political style, stating that he does not shed tears for the cameras. Kakkar described the Congress as a party capable of making Delhi safe and progressive. Her statement indicated that the decision to join the Congress was not limited to merely changing organizations; she linked it to the future of the capital and the struggle against the BJP at the national level. However, no detailed action plan regarding Delhi was mentioned.
Kakkar appealed for unity in support of the Congress and Rahul Gandhi. She described this struggle as a fight to keep the ‘idea of India’ alive. With her joining the Congress, the politics of Delhi, opposition unity, and controversies related to the Election Commission have all emerged under a single political message. The party's further announcement regarding her role and responsibilities in the Congress will be closely watched.