Mobile Internet, broadband, smartphone and social media played a major role in the debut win of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its chief ministerial candidate Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi.
Throughout their campaign, AAP members used social media, text messaging, voice, and mobile internet to mobilize voters. Their success was visible in the number of likes and shares each page of the party and its candidates got in Facebook. The campaign also saw videos of candidates’ open forum going viral through YouTube and other social media platforms.
The use of robo calling to contact voters has been highly successful. Voters got elated when they heard Arvind Kejrival calling them directly (recorded) promising better governance which the Congress party could not deliver all through its tenure in the capital. AAP ensured that the calling continued till the fag end of their campaign ensuring this gargantuan victory.
The low speed mobile Internet did not hamper the mood of the AAP party members and its chief. At a time when the ruling UPA government was trying to clip the social media sites with the so-called protective measures against abusive political campaigns, Arvind and his team used social media constructively to communicate and mobilize young voters.
AAP, which is around one year old, has used popular social media networks including Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, YouTube, etc. to communicate on the party’s latest announcements to take on the Congress party led by the three time Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit, who lost to Arvind Kejriwal for 25,864 votes, and BJP.
BJP, which has become aggressive on social media after inducting Gujarat CM Narendra Modi as the prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, could not win enough majority, thanks to AAP’s social media strategies and people-friendly campaign.
AAP tried to make less personal attack on both Congress and BJP, and attracted Delhi youth to vote for them for its focus on development. The young party has also received Rs 20 core funding to run for the Delhi 2013 elections using Twitter, YouTube, etc.
Telecom operators such as Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular, Reliance Communications, Vodafone India, etc. played a major role in AAP’s success.
The Indian capital seems to be heading for a hung assembly and there will be state elections in 2014. We will continue to see the wide usage of smartphones, mobile Internet and social media in the upcoming election campaign which is likely to be fought more on the Internet space rather than the streets.
Hope NaMo smartphones, which are seen as a tool to communicate effectively with BJP fans, will become affordable to common man as well. Gujarat CM Modi must suspend the thousands of paid bloggers who support BJP and let common man join his drive to become PM from CM. Delhi voters have proved that all these political gimmicks will no more be effective in the year ahead. Let our traditional parties wake up to the call of new generation voters!
Congress Party leader Rahul Gandhi, who could not generate enthusiasm among voters in Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi, says he will learn lessons from AAP. Hope Congress and all other parties end their dynasty politics. Party leaders have become uncrowned kings of India. Parties are ruling the country with ad hoc legislation. Of late we heard criminals in Kerala jail using Facebook and mobile phones with support from leading parties in the state.
India needs a political system that focuses on people’s issue. They should be committed to uphold the values of the democracy which we Indians preach as world’s largest and most glorious.
Cautionary statement: This journalist does not endorse any political parties mentioned here.