Agencies tasked with getting feedback from 400 people in each ward; party likely to repeat its 2017 strategy promising a garbage-free city; 30 lakh households covered in door-to-door campaign: AAP
Agencies tasked with getting feedback from 400 people in each ward; party likely to repeat its 2017 strategy promising a garbage-free city; 30 lakh households covered in door-to-door campaign: AAP
The Aam Aadmi Party has hired at least two private agencies to conduct surveys in the 250 municipal wards in the city to help it select candidates for the upcoming Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) polls, according to a senior party leader.
The party leader, requesting anonymity, also said that AAP is likely to hit the streets with the campaign slogan ‘ MCD mein bhi Kejriwal’.
This is the same slogan that the party promoted earlier this year in February on the assumption that the civic polls would be held in March-April upon completion of the terms of the three erstwhile municipalities.
However, with the Centre amending the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957, to unify the three erstwhile municipal corporations into a unified MCD in May, the polls are expected to be held later this year.
Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal had on October 27 announced that his party would fight the MCD polls on the issues of garbage and cleanliness, while accusing the BJP, which has been in power in Delhi’s three civic bodies (now unified) for 15 years, of corruption.
Even though the civic body election dates are yet to be announced, both AAP and the BJP have already started their campaigns. Two senior BJP leaders — party chief J.P. Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah — attended events in the city this month where they took on AAP’s Delhi government.
“We will inform people about the BJP’s corruption and how it led to the creation of the garbage mountains. We will assure the people about improving the standards of cleanliness in the city on being elected to the municipality, just as we turned around Delhi’s schools and hospitals after winning the Assembly poll,” the senior leader said.
Same game plan
The party seems to be betting on its 2017 game plan. Five years ago, when the three erstwhile civic bodies went to polls, AAP had centred its campaign around cleaning Delhi and attacking the BJP over the landfills.
It had released posters of Mr. Kejriwal with a broom in his hand, sweeping the streets. ‘To make Delhi clean, vote for Kejriwal’ was one of the main slogans of the party in 2017.
However, the party lost all three erstwhile municipal corporations to the BJP.
Going door-to-door
Sharing details about the survey, the senior party leader added that the private agencies will contact about 400 people from each ward to get the public’s feedback on the probable faces.
Based on the feedback, the party will take a call on the candidates.
“This is something we had strictly followed during the Assembly election as well,” the senior leader said. When contacted, AAP’s in-charge of MCD, Durgesh Pathak, did not comment on the surveys. “The party has completed one round of door-to-door campaigning and covered more than 30 lakh households. We will start another round soon,” he said.
