Victory of inclusive politics, 'winds of change' blowing in country: Oppn

New Delhi: Opposition leaders on Tuesday hailed the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party's(AAP) landslide win in the Delhi assembly polls as a defeat of the politics of polarisation and hate and a victory of inclusive politics, and said "winds of change" are blowing in the country.

With Kejriwal set to become the chief minister of Delhi for the third straight term, leaders of non-BJP parties cutting across party lines said the poll outcome showed that elections can be fought and won on the development plank. There was also a call for all regional parties to come together to keep the BJP out of power.

"Development agenda has won, I congratulate Arvind Kejriwal. The Delhi polls have become bipolar, there was nothing for Congress in these polls," Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said.

CPI-M veteran and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan hailed Kejriwal's win as a victory for inclusive politics.

"Congratulations to @ArvindKejriwal and @AamAadmiParty on a resounding victory in Delhi elections. Let this victory be a harbinger for pro-people and inclusive politics in our country," Vijayan said in a tweet.

CPI General Secretary D. Raja congratulated Kejriwal on phone.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said the victory marks the defeat of "politics of polarisation". "Congratulations @ArvindKejriwal ji & Delhi! You have defeated negative & blatant hate politics decisively. Your verdict marks the defeat of politics of polarisation and division. I sincerely hope BJP takes a cue from this result and shuns communalism & bigotry once for all," he said.

Calling Kejriwal as a leader who heralded development, former Karnataka Chief Minister and JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy said people have taught a lesson for labelling him a "terrorist" and also upheld the necessity of a regional party.

"Heartfelt congratulations to @ArvindKejriwal @AamAadmiParty. People of Delhi have showed that "fascist ideology" will never win their hearts. "Congratulations to AAP and voters of Delhi for testifying that successful politics with development as criteria (to win polls), amidst money and muscle power," Kumaraswamy tweeted.

NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday attributed the Aam Aadmi Party's stellar performance in the Delhi assembly elections to the common people rejecting the BJP's "communal polarisation" agenda which he said marked the "mood of change" in the country.

Pawar also underlined the need for regional parties to come together to keep the BJP out of power.

As per the latest update, the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP has won 46 of the total 70 assembly seats and leading on 16 as per the latest results and trends. The BJP has won five seats and is leading on three others, while the Congress stares at a blank.

Pawar said the BJP committed "blunders" during the campaigning for the Delhi polls like "inciting religious sentiments to divide people along communal lines", but failed.

Without naming Union minister Anurag Thakur, the NCP chief said some people in the government made statements such as 'goli maro', which were indicative of the BJP "crossing the limits, but people of Delhi rejected them".

Talking to reporters here, Pawar said the results of the Delhi elections indicated that "winds of change" were blowing in the country. "The series of BJP's defeat in elections will not stop now," he added.

"The BJP, as usual, played the communal card to polarise votes, but failed. The Delhi Assembly poll contest was only between the Aam Aadmi Party and BJP, hence one might claim the saffron party's vote share is soaring," Pawar said.

He said the Delhi poll results indicated that the "winds of change" are blowing in the country. "The results are not surprising to me," he said.

Today's result is not limited to Delhi alone as people from various states live in the national capital. There is an environment of change in their own states which they expressed while voting in Delhi, the former Union minister said.

"There is an area called Karol Bagh in Delhi, where many Marathi-speaking people live. I had once gone there for a function. I had asked people about the poll trend and they had said only Kejriwal (will win)," he said.

"People had said that the the Kejriwal government tried to solve basic issues such as electricity and water bills, healthcare, education in Delhi," he said.

Referring to the BJP's defeat in the assembly polls held in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh during 2018-19, Pawar said, "I don't think this series of BJP's defeat will stop now".

"There is some kind of disappointment among the people which was reflected in the outcome of Delhi polls," he said.

Underlining the need for regional parties to come together to keep the BJP out of power, Pawar cited the example of Maharashtra, where the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress formed an alliance to come to power. "Regional parties need to come together under a 'common minimum programme' and provide a stable government to keep the BJP out of power.

"In Kerala, there is Communist party...in Maharashtra, we did some experiment. It means going forward, there is a need to come together on the basic common minimum programme, and I am sure people will support it," the veteran politician said.

Pawar said there is a feeling among Opposition parties that the BJP is like a "calamity" for the country, and there was a need to stand united.