AAP planning expansion, may target BJP-ruled states: Yogendra Yadav

NEW DELHI: The Delhi faceoff between Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP is likely to be the first in a series of showdowns in BJP-ruled states. A day after his party's spectacular performance in Delhi, AAP ideologue Yogendra Yadav said that the party would soon build a road map for national expansion. The five states he listed, apart from Punjab, for AAP's first foray are: Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Orissa. Significantly, four of them are BJP states.

The states ripe for taking, according to him, are those which lack a credible opposition. "We wanted to create a national platform for alternative politics and consciously chose Delhi as our starting point. A state which we will naturally expand to, since our four MPs are from there, is Punjab. The route to national politics has to be decided properly first."

He said, "In the next five years, we would like to make our presence felt in at least three to five states more. For instance, the Gujarat to Orissa belt has a vacuum as far as political opposition goes. There is a huge possibility in these areas where Congress is declining. In Delhi, AAP did well because we provided people with a third alternative."

Yadav added that there was a very real possibility of Congress sinking nationally. "The party is on an edge and another big push will see it topple completely," Yadav added.

Talking about the party's resounding success in Delhi, Yadav said that they would have to be extremely careful about not adopting VIP culture. "We will lose our distinctiveness if we start behaving like other parties. The last time, in sheer excitement some people in the party promised more than was possible — for instance, on security, as long as it is not obtrusive and unnecessary, it may be necessary for someone like Arvind (Kejriwal). But the day we start looking like other parties we will finish ourselves."