Never make the mistake of writing off Arvind Kejriwal, says Ashutosh

After the Aam Aadmi Party lost the Delhi elections, I was bombarded with three questions because of my past association with the party. First, why did I join the AAP? Second, why did I leave? And third, can Arvind Kejriwal bounce back?

I joined the AAP for only one reason: it had the potential to be a change agent, and politics in the country could change for the better. In Kejriwal, I saw a future leader with the ability to bring change to a society suffering from the malaise of corruption and moral degradation. Kejriwal had three personality traits that endeared him to me: He was absolutely honest, he was fearless and he had a dream of changing the world. His communication skills were phenomenal. He established the AAP and became a phenomenon that many before him had aspired to be, but had failed miserably.

Like a good batsman, he chose the right balls to hit. His timing was perfect. In no time, he earned the goodwill of the people and formed a government in Delhi with unprecedented, historic numbers. His initial years in government were very good, but as time passed, I sensed a perceptible change in his personality. I was groping in the dark about the reason for this gradual but definite transformation, and finally, I reached the conclusion that we had all underestimated the beast called politics.

Kejriwal wanted to change politics, but once he became chief minister, politics started to re-engineer him. This was the moment when he should have resisted and rejected the charm and mystique of politics, as Gandhi did. But Kejriwal was no Gandhi, and in the end, he was appropriated by politics. Once that happened, it became very difficult for me to remain his companion in the pursuit of power. On August 15, 2018, I said goodbye to him and became a free man.

Can Kejriwal bounce back? I know it is not advisable to write the political obituary of a man who is phenomenally talented and has hunger in his belly to resurrect himself. And he can do that. But here is a caveat. Kejriwal’s biggest asset was his moral capital―being an incorruptible idealist, guided by an immense desire and a dream to change the world. He was seen as a revolutionary, audacious enough to challenge the entire corrupt establishment and unseduced by the power game. In ten years as chief minister, that Kejriwal disappeared, never to return. The world will not see that daydreamer, the redeemer of society and the idealist fighter again. However, Kejriwal the politician can make a comeback if he reinvents himself, plays his cards well and reignites the hunger within to succeed once more.

Let us not underestimate him. He still has a government in Punjab. He has only lost a fort, not the kingdom. The AAP remains a force to reckon with in Delhi.

Of course, he has lost his credibility significantly, but politics is an entirely different craft where credibility, once lost, can be regained in a different time and space. Today, the situation is not in his favour, but times change. A few years ago, everyone had written off Chandrababu Naidu, yet he returned with a vengeance, being responsible for the continuance of the Modi government at the Centre. If Naidu can bounce back, why not Kejriwal?

I know the road ahead for him is tough, the weather is stormy and the enemy is powerful. But never make the mistake of writing off Kejriwal. He is a gifted politician with enough cunning to rise yet again.

Ashutosh is co-founder of Satya Hindi, an independent news network, and author of the book Hindu Rashtra.