The BJP on Saturday pulled off a major political upset by unseating the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) from Delhi after over 10 years. As per the latest Election Commission data, the BJP may win around 47 seats and the Kejriwal-led party winning around 23 seats in the 70-seat Assembly.
With the BJP set to regain control of Delhi after 27 years, what went wrong for the Aam Aadmi Party?
Here are 10 reasons behind AAP’s defeat:
Ten years of incumbency
After governing Delhi for a decade, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) faced significant anti-incumbency.
Delhi Election Results 2025
While AAP achieved impressive results in health and education during its first two terms, and kept voters happy with power and water subsidies, unfulfilled promises, such as improved air quality, became major poll issues.
The AAP’s assertion that the BJP government at the Centre was creating roadblocks in its functioning began to be increasingly seen by voters as excuses, especially after ten years in power.
The BJP’s “double engine” promise, suggesting seamless governance between the central and state levels, appealed to voters against the backdrop of AAP’s constant conflicts with the Centre. Furthermore, internal disarray within the AAP, with senior leaders facing jail time, added to the challenges of incumbency.
Liquor scam, Sheesh Mahal dent Kejriwal’s ‘imandaar’ image
The image of Arvind Kejriwal as an anti-corruption crusader suffered a setback due to several factors, most notably the controversy surrounding the now-scrapped liquor policy.
The BJP accused the AAP government of turning Delhi into a “city of drunkards” with the new policy, and receiving crores in kickbacks from those who opened the vends.
Probes by central agencies led to the arrest of top AAP leaders, including Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, and Sanjay Singh. These arrests forced Sisodia to step down as deputy chief minister and kept the AAP in “firefighting mode”, distracting from fulfilling its 2020 poll promises.
Additionally, the “Sheesh Mahal” controversy, referring to the renovated residence of the chief minister, further dented Kejriwal‘s image. The BJP further highlighted a Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) report that indicated the renovation cost had increased from an initial estimate of Rs 7.91 crore to Rs 33.66 crore by completion.
AAP has been synonymous with Arvind Kejriwal since its inception. Kejriwal, initially seen as an agent of change with his untucked shirt and no-nonsense demeanor, resonated with the common person.
However, the anti-corruption image of Kejriwal and his party suffered irreparable damage, specially after the AAP leader’s arrest in March 2024 on corruption allegations and his subsequent resignation as CM.
While he was later granted bail, the leadership transition to Atishi and the circumstances surrounding Kejriwal’s arrest damaged the party’s image and cohesion.
No tie-up, Congress did strategic campaigning
The absence of an alliance with the Congress party and the Congress’s strategic campaigning likely contributed to the AAP’s loss.
In previous elections, the AAP had significantly reduced the Congress’s presence in the Delhi assembly.
Attempts to convince Congress workers to collaborate with AAP volunteers reportedly led to an “existential crisis” among them.
The Congress decided to campaign aggressively against the AAP, sensing “anger building up against the AAP”. Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra attacked the AAP in the final days of the Delhi campaign.
The Congress further claimed the AAP did not want an alliance, with Kejriwal announcing all 70 candidates early on.
The rise of AAP in Delhi has been congruous with the decline of the Congress. In 2013, AAP won 28 seats with a 29.49% vote share, while the Congress tally decreased to 8 seats from 43 in 2008. In 2015, Congress suffered a 15% decline in its vote share, while the AAP saw its support base rise by around 15%.
Flood of freebies but no next-level of development
While AAP’s welfare schemes, such as free electricity and bus travel for women, initially garnered support, a lack of focus on infrastructure development and maintenance became a significant issue.
The poor condition of roads and sewers across Delhi angered voters.
Overflowing drains, potholed roads, and irregular garbage collection contributed to the party’s unpopularity.
The AAP’s control over the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) meant it could not deflect blame for these issues onto the BJP. Voters in middle- and upper-middle-class areas were particularly affected by the deteriorating infrastructure.
AAP’s origins trace back to Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption movement, positioning the party as an alternative to the Congress in 2013.
While AAP secured mandates in 2015 and 2020, their repeated promises and “freebies” seem to have lost their appeal.
The promise of piped water connections for all in 2015 remains unfulfilled, as does the promise of full statehood for Delhi and the “Rozgar Budget” aimed at creating 20 lakh jobs.
Kejriwal himself admitted that he had failed to fulfill three promises: cleaning the Yamuna, providing clean drinking water, and upgrading Delhi’s roads. This acknowledgment gave the BJP an opportunity to attack the AAP, with Amit Shah mocking Kejriwal’s promise to purify the Yamuna.
BJP focuses on Kejriwal, Hindutva takes back seat
The BJP’s campaign strategy focused primarily on targeting Arvind Kejriwal and his government, rather than emphasising Hindutva, as it has often done during campainging in other state elections as well as previous Delhi polls.
This approach likely resonated with a broader segment of the population, including those who may not have been inclined to support a religiously charged campaign. By focusing on issues such as corruption and governance, the BJP effectively undermined AAP’s credibility and appealed to a wider range of voters.
The BJP also focused on hyper-local issues such as air pollution, traffic, and public safety, and engaged with local Resident Welfare Associations. They also promoted central government schemes.
The BJP also targeted specific demographics, including Purvanchalis and slum dwellers, and utilised an aggressive digital campaign with AI-enhanced content and memes targeting AAP.
BJP’s latent vote
The BJP’s consistent performance in the Lok Sabha polls in Delhi indicated a latent voter base that the party successfully mobilised this time around for the assembly elections.
Despite AAP’s strong performance in the assembly elections, the BJP had consistently swept Lok Sabha elections in the national capital, winning all seven seats.
This pre-existing support base provided a foundation for the BJP’s campaign and likely contributed to their victory.
The BJP also strategically fielded Parvesh Verma, a strong Jat leader, in the New Delhi constituency, signaling their intention to win back the confidence of the Jat community, which had previously favoured AAP in Delhi elections.
Rahul roasted Kejriwal as payback for Haryana
During the Delhi Assembly elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched strong criticisms against Arvind Kejriwal, which may have been payback for events in Haryana. Gandhi’s attacks covered a range of issues, including alleged corruption, unfulfilled promises, and inaction on key issues.
Like the BJP, Gandhi attacked Kejriwal over the alleged liquor scam and accused him of living in a “Sheesh Mahal” while engaging in corrupt practices.
Gandhi said that Kejriwal made false promises, “similar to Prime Minister Narendra Modi”, particularly regarding cleaning the Yamuna River. He also challenged Kejriwal to drink Delhi’s tap water, implying it was still polluted despite promises to clean it.
MCD with AAP: No excuses
The Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) win in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in 2022 proved to be a double-edged sword, ultimately hurting the party instead of helping it. AAP had promised a cleaner city with world-class roads, but it fell short on both accounts. The MCD House was in limbo, and the Standing Committee, which controls all financial powers, was never formed. The AAP repeatedly accused the Centre of creating hurdles through the Lieutenant Governor and stalling projects.
This time around, voters held the AAP accountable for the deteriorating civic infrastructure across Delhi.
AAP’s performance in the MCD was a letdown for the people of Delhi. The party failed to address critical issues such as clearing garbage, repairing roads, and cleaning clogged sewers. Erratic water supply and overflowing sewers that were never repaired because Rs 4,000 crore for the Delhi Jal Board was not released further hurt the party.
Senior party leaders stated that the MCD functioning had collapsed under the AAP, and no work was being done, leading to frustration among councillors.
Steady exodus of AAP leaders
The steady departure of senior leaders from AAP over time might have also weakened the party’s organisational structure and public image.
The exit of prominent figures like Prashant Bhushan, Yogendra Yadav, Mayank Gandhi, and Kumar Vishwas, who had dared to disagree with Arvind Kejriwal, and repeatedly accused Kejriwal of having an “autocratic” style of leadership.
Resignation of senior leaders like Kailash Gahlot, who cited the party’s focus on political agenda over fulfilling promises, along with internal challenges, signalled internal discord.
The BJP had termed Gahlot’s resignation a “courageous move”.
AAP goes negative
Negative campaigning by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) centered on issues like Yamuna River pollution, the Delhi Police, and the Election Commission (EC) may have affected public perception of the AAP government.
In the lead up to the polls, Kejriwal accused the BJP-led Haryana government of poisoning the Yamuna River, which supplies drinking water to Delhi. He claimed that the Haryana government deliberately sent polluted waters to Delhi to create an artificial water scarcity and blame the AAP.
The AAP also repeatedly levelled accusations of voter fraud and irregularities against the BJP as well as the EC.
AAP alleged that the Election Commission and Delhi Police were shielding BJP workers and accused them of “hooliganism”. Kejriwal wrote to the Chief Election Commissioner, expressing concern over the intimidation and harassment of AAP volunteers by BJP workers. The EC responded that no written complaints could be traced in most cases but assured that all registered complaints are investigated.
Kejriwal further criticised the Election Commission for allegedly refusing to make Form 17C public, a document detailing the number of votes polled at each booth. AAP then launched a website, transparentelections.in, claiming to upload Form 17C data for all constituencies to present the data in an accessible format.
The EC dismissed Kejriwal’s claims regarding Form 17C, stating that copies had already been provided to polling agents at each booth after voting, as per Rule 49S of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961.