New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is preparing to make pollution the focus of its ‘Parivartan Yatra’ in Delhi scheduled for next month with an eye on the upcoming assembly elections. Additionally, considering that there are a number of leaders staking claim to the chief minister’s post, the party has also decided that the yatra will be held under collective leadership, ThePrint has learnt.
While the full details of the yatra, which was announced Wednesday, are yet to be sketched out, a senior party functionary told ThePrint that the yatra will cover all 70 assembly constituencies. Apart from senior Delhi BJP leaders, the yatra will also see the presence of MPs, MLAs, and national leaders of the party.
The party will also come up with a factsheet on pollution in Delhi and how it has increased since the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government came to power.
A senior BJP leader said, “Deliberations are on regarding the manner in which these yatras will be held. The idea is to cover all the Lok Sabha constituencies and assembly seats. At the same time, data is being collected as to how pollution has increased manifold since the AAP government came to power.”
The BJP had earlier planned to hold the yatra in July, but this was then postponed to November. Now, the plan is to hold it in December.
“Some of the BJP MPs are busy campaigning for the Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly polls. At the same time, some of the MPs have conveyed that they will be busy with the Parliament session and hence holding it now might not be possible. New dates are being worked out,” said another senior BJP leader.
This comes after the Delhi unit of the Congress concluded the first phase of its month-long ‘Delhi Nyay Yatra’ on 12 November. The yatra was held in all the 70 constituencies of Delhi and was attended by senior national Congress leaders, including Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Rajya Sabha member Ajay Maken, among others.
The BJP is also looking at concluding the yatra by organising a major public programme by a senior BJP leader. In the past, many such yatras in other states have been wrapped up or flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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Out of power in Delhi since 1998
The development comes ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections next year. They are crucial for the BJP since it has been out of power in the national capital since 1998.
The BJP, which so far has been targeting the AAPgovernment over alleged corruption and misgovernance, has also hit out at the AAP over the worsening air pollution in the capital. It had even asked the Delhi government to order the closure of all schools up to Class 5.
“The current situation in Delhi is such that if we hold the Parivartan Yatra right now and highlight the issue of pollution, we will be able to get better traction. At the same time, we can bring to the fore how the AAP government has failed to deliver on several accounts,” the second senior BJP leader quoted above said.
“We have been holding press conferences and agitations to highlight how the AAP government has converted Delhi into a gas chamber. This is not how Delhi used to be and their argument about stubble burning also holds no value now as Punjab also has an AAP government,” the leader added.
The BJP sees the 2025 polls as its best chance to stage a comeback, with several leaders saying that the ruling AAP had lost its sheen and that holding programmes such as the yatra could help the party connect with the voters.
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
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