'Councillors Being Lured With Pralobhan Model': AAP, BJP Level Poaching Allegations Against Each Other Days After MCD Polls

Just days after results of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) results were announced by the state Election Commission, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) started levelling similar allegations against each other, claiming councillors of the respective parties are being poached by the other.

Addressing a press conference on Saturday, BJP leaders including national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala and Delhi unit media cell head Harish Khurana alleged that AAP of trying to poach the party’s newly elected councillors. Poonawala alleged a “new model” of the AAP — “Pralobhan for Parshad” (alluring councillors) — has come to the fore.

On the other hand, AAP also said BJP is trying to “buy” it’s recently-elected councillors. AAP leader Sanjay Singh addressed a press conference on Thursday, alongside Dr Ronakshi Sharma, Arun Nawariya, and Jyoti Rani. He said despite getting 30 fewer seats in the recently concluded civic body polls in Delhi, and losing 80 seats as compared to the last elections, the BJP is down to “dirty games”.

He said, “BJP has become Kidnapping Gang and Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta’s name is also coming to the fore. The Election Commission should intervene. The BJP doesn’t have a free hand to topple governments by horse trading.”

BJP leader Ashish Sood took to Twitter and wrote, “Arvind Kejriwal, you are for sale. What to expect from the most corrupt party @AamAadmiParty in the shortest possible time, now they want to change the decision of the people of Delhi with the looted money of Delhi.”

BJP’s Harish Khurana claimed that an “agent” of Kejriwal was trying to induce the BJP councillors to switch to the AAP. He said there was “evidence” of poaching attempts by the AAP. The allegations of the BJP have come close to two Congress councillors joining the AAP on Friday. The deserters, however, came back to their party hours after switching to the AAP.

On December 7, the day results of MCD elections were announced, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had alleged that the BJP was trying to poach newly-elected AAP councillors and asserted that none of them will fall prey to their “game”. He said the newly elected councillors have been instructed to record “such phone calls” in case they receive one.

Sisodia’s allegations come after the AAP won the MCD polls with 134 seats, ending the 15-year rule of the BJP in the prestigious municipal corporation and reducing the Congress to just nine seats in a house of 250. The BJP, which was predicted to suffer a massive defeat in exit polls, put up a spirited fight, winning 104 municipal wards.

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