Sita, Hanuman, Bharat, vacant chair: For AAP, Ram the refrain

“Today I person taken implicit arsenic the Chief Minister of Delhi… I person the aforesaid symptom successful my bosom arsenic Bharat had erstwhile Lord Shri Ram went to exile from Ayodhya for 14 years and Bharat had to instrumentality implicit the governance of Ayodhya. Just arsenic Bharat ruled Ayodhya by keeping Lord Shri Ram’s ‘khadaun’ for 14 years, successful the aforesaid mode I volition tally the Delhi authorities for the adjacent 4 months,” Atishi said successful a video code aft taking charge.

While the Delhi Assembly polls are expected successful little than 5 months, the AAP’s repeated references to the Ramayana started earlier this year.

The Delhi government’s Budget was called the Ram Rajya Budget. The AAP and its MLAs organised a bid of “Sundarkand” and “Hanuman Chalisa” recital programmes each Tuesday up of the Ayodhya Ram Temple inauguration.

On Sunday, during Kejriwal’s Janta ki Adalat gathering astatine Jantar Mantar, his 6-month enactment successful Tihar Jail was likened to Ram vanvas.

Even past week, erstwhile helium announced his resignation arsenic Chief Minister, Kejriwal had referred to Sita’s agnipariksha. “Inhone specified upar aarop lagaya hai. Jab Bhagwan Ram vanvas se aaye the, Sita Maiya ko agnipariksha deni padi. Aaj mai agnipariksha dene ja raha hoon (They person made allegations against me. When Lord Ram came backmost from the forests, Sita had to acquisition a proceedings by fire. Today, I americium doing the same),” helium said.

On Sunday, erstwhile lawman main curate and elder AAP person Manish Sisodia, portion speaking astatine the Janta ki Adalat gathering, drew parallels betwixt Lakshman and himself.

Accusing the BJP of trying to interruption him successful jailhouse and abstracted him from Kejriwal, helium said, “They tried incessantly to interruption maine from wrong and abstracted maine from the party… When BJP knew that I would ne'er betray my 26 years of relationship with Kejriwal, they kept maine distant from him for 18 months successful jail… Kejriwal volition proceed to combat this conflict against the dictatorial Ravan, the aforesaid mode Lord Ram did, and I volition travel him similar Lakshman did… No dictatorship successful the satellite tin interruption me.”

In March this year, Atishi, who held the concern portfolio, had mentioned Ram oregon Ram Rajya astatine slightest 40 times successful her 90-minute code arsenic she tabled the Budget document. The AAP besides ran a societal media run “Kejriwal ka Ram Rajya” with hashtags and highlights of the 2024-25 Budget.

Also successful March, erstwhile asked astir the AAP’s Ram Rajya pitch, which was a taxable of the party’s 2019 Lok Sabha campaign, Kejriwal had said, “We judge successful Ram Rajya… We person mentioned the conception successful respective Budget presentations… adjacent during (former concern curate Manish Sisodia’s) time.”

Months earlier the 2022 MCD polls, during Diwali successful 2021, the AAP-led Delhi Government had constructed a 30-foot replica of the Ayodhya Ram Temple astatine Thyagraj Stadium.

In the aforesaid year, the authorities added Ayodhya to the database of its Teerth Yatra programme, which was launched up of the 2020 Assembly elections. About 87,000 radical person participated successful the escaped pilgrimage programme truthful far.

“The effort is to seizure the votes of the mediate people arsenic good arsenic those who person started to ballot for the BJP but are not its halfway basal but are influenced by the Hindu civilization and sentiment,” a elder AAP person said.

Another elder enactment person said, “AAP has earlier besides utilized Ramayana arsenic portion of its campaign… In Delhi, AAP has a beardown clasp (on voters)… It is 1 mode to link with the public.”

Another elder person said with the Assembly polls approaching, this is the AAP’s mode of taking its connection to the people. “People are precise affectional towards religion and culture… So, done these campaigns…, the enactment is trying to fortify its ballot base… It is precise casual to marque radical recognize wherefore the CM resigned, wherefore helium needs to bash Agnipariksha… alternatively of analyzable words, radical volition subordinate to it up of the upcoming elections.”