A day after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was officially recognised as a National Party, there was no end of joy as the party workers celebrated the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) decision with a full show.
Amid sounds of celebrations, at the party headquarters in New Delhi, AAP’s young face and a key member, Raghav Chadha, said that it is his dream to see Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal become the Prime minister of India.
In an exclusive conversation with The New Indian, Chadha bared his heart as he said, “As a fan of Arvind Kejriwal and as a foot soldier of the Arvind Kejriwal brigade, I pray to God that one day Arvind Kejriwal becomes the PM of India.”
“That is my dream,” the youngest Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament said on Tuesday, April 11.
While the statement can be interpreted as an overflow of emotion, the timing of it holds significance, as there is no secret in AAP’s wishes to project its national convenor and face of the party, Arvind Kejriwal, as a candidate for the post of Prime minister.
Though a deeply divided Opposition is yet to cobble together a united force with many satraps pulling the strings, the AAP has not given up on hope as they quietly make pitches for opposition unity.
Talking about the ECI’s recognition, Chadha termed the moment a mega milestone. “It is an emotional moment for all of us. It is the work of all workers and volunteers of AAP that we have achieved this mega milestone,” the 34-year-old MP said.
Chadha also expressed pride in what AAP, one of the country’s youngest political parties, which came into existence in 2012, had achieved in a decade.
“I have said this on several occasions, and I will say it again, AAP is India’s fastest-growing political startup. In almost a decade of our existence, we have achieved so much,” Chadha said.
“We have governments in more than one state, we have more than 10 MPs and we have numerous councillors and MLAs. I do hope that AAP will continue to grow at this accelerated pace,” he added.
It was a dream come true moment for AAP as it achieved the status of a National Party by meeting the requirements of Para 6B(iii), which mandates recognition as a state party in at least four states based on electoral performance.
The party has fulfilled this condition by gaining recognition as a state party in four states, namely Delhi, Goa, Punjab and Gujarat.