Image source, ANI
The dispute between Congress and Aam Aadmi Party is not a new thing. But before the Punjab elections, this sharp rhetoric has now reached personal attacks.
On November 4, at a Congress rally in Sangrur, Punjab, Rahul Gandhi targeted Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and alleged that when Bhagwant Mann was a Lok Sabha MP, he smelled of alcohol even at 11 in the morning.
Rahul Gandhi said that if there is a fight against drugs in any state, then the Chief Minister of that state should himself stay away from drugs.
Accusing the Punjab government of running from Delhi, he said that half the command here is in the hands of Amit Shah and half in the hands of Arvind Kejriwal.
AAP leader and Delhi state president Saurabh Bhardwaj called Rahul Gandhi's statement a 'small thing' for a leader of his stature. He asked whether the biggest fight of Congress is with BJP or with the opposition parties?
After this, the attack on social media between the two parties also intensified.
Aadmi Party released a poster regarding Rahul Gandhi, in which he was personally attacked. In response, Congress leader BV Srinivas posted a picture of Arvind Kejriwal, in which also a personal attack was made.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and other leaders of Punjab Congress also accused the Bhagwant Mann government of corruption and ignoring the interests of Punjab.
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This conflict between the two parties has increased at a time when assembly elections are to be held in Punjab next year.
But is the reason for this fight only Punjab elections or are the roots of political distrust between the two parties deeper than this?
Story beyond Punjab elections?
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There has been contradiction in the relations between Aam Aadmi Party and Congress since the beginning. On one hand, both the parties have been calling themselves part of opposition politics against BJP, while on the other hand, they are each other's biggest political rivals in many states.
Senior journalist Hemant Attri believes that the Punjab elections are the immediate reason for the current conflict, but the history of opposition between the two parties is much older than this.
He says, "Aam Aadmi Party has definitely attacked BJP since its rise till today, but who is their main target? It always remains to be seen. It is Congress Party."
According to Hemant Attri, Aam Aadmi Party and Congress are fundamentally two different political poles. In some special circumstances both try to come together, but political competition remains between them.
He says that even in national politics, there is now very little scope for closeness between the two.
According to Attri, the current political strength of the Aam Aadmi Party is mainly limited to Punjab. After many Rajya Sabha MPs of Aam Aadmi Party joined BJP, the party's position in Parliament has also weakened.
Analysts believe that due to these reasons, the role of Aam Aadmi Party in national politics is no longer the same as before.
Kejriwal government was formed with the support of Congress in 2013
Image source: Getty Images
To understand the history of the relationship between Aam Aadmi Party and Congress, we will have to return to 2013.
After the Anna movement, Arvind Kejriwal formed the Aam Aadmi Party in 2012. A major target of this movement was the then Congress government. The party that emerged from the movement against corruption challenged the politics of Congress.
After the Delhi Assembly elections in December 2013, Aam Aadmi Party got 28 seats, while Congress was reduced to eight seats. BJP emerged as the largest party, but remained away from majority.
In such a situation, Congress supported Aam Aadmi Party from outside and Arvind Kejriwal became the Chief Minister of Delhi for the first time.
However, this government lasted only 49 days. Kejriwal resigned after the Janlokpal bill could not be introduced in the Assembly.
After this the political conflict between the two parties increased.
In the 2015 Delhi Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party won 67 out of 70 seats and Congress's account was not even opened. Even in 2020, Aam Aadmi Party retained power by winning 62 seats, while Congress once again could not win any seat.
Despite this, during efforts for opposition unity against BJP in national politics, both the parties came on one platform.
Both Aam Aadmi Party and Congress joined the opposition alliance India formed in June 2023.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, both the parties divided seats in Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana and Chandigarh. However, both contested elections separately in Punjab.
This also did not last long.
Both the parties again came up against each other in the 2025 Delhi Assembly elections. BJP came to power by winning 48 seats, while Aam Aadmi Party got 22 seats and Congress could not win even a single seat.
After this, Aam Aadmi Party made public its distance from the India Alliance. In July 2025, Sanjay Singh said that the India Alliance was formed for the Lok Sabha elections and the Aam Aadmi Party is no longer a part of it.
In April this year, the joining of seven Rajya Sabha MPs from Aam Aadmi Party to BJP also intensified the political allegations and counter-allegations between the two parties.
In this way, the India Bloc formed for opposition unity is no longer the basis of political cooperation between the two parties.
'It is wrong to expect friendship'
Image source: Punjab Congress
Senior journalist Saba Naqvi believes that in the current situation it is wrong to expect political friendship between the two parties.
She says, "It is foolish to expect that Congress and Aam Aadmi Party will remain together."
According to Saba Naqvi, the biggest reason for this is Punjab. The Aam Aadmi Party is in power there and Congress is the main opposition party. In such a situation, it is natural for both the parties to contest elections against each other.
She says that Punjab has been the traditional political base of Congress and the party would like to regain it.
According to Saba Naqvi, it is important for the Aam Aadmi Party to save Punjab. After losing power in Delhi, the party has Punjab as the only state where it has a government.
She says, "Aam Aadmi Party has to save Punjab, otherwise nothing will be left in their hands."
Saba Naqvi considers this a question of existence for the Aam Aadmi Party.
Naqvi says, "Congress has been calling Aam Aadmi Party the B team of BJP for a long time. But now in national politics, Congress has to work with those regional parties which it earlier called the B team of BJP."
Giving this example she mentions Trinamool Congress. According to him, Congress understands the need for broad opposition unity against BJP, but it is still finding it difficult to accept the Aam Aadmi Party.
Naqvi says, "The conflict between the common man and the Congress will increase further because in Punjab the Aam Aadmi Party has to show that it is a staunch opponent of the Congress."
Who has the upper hand in Punjab?
According to senior journalist Jaspal Sidhu, who closely follows the politics of Punjab, there is a possibility of a direct contest in the next assembly elections between Congress and Aam Aadmi Party.
He says, "There is a direct competition between the two and the competition will be between these two. The other parties, like Akali Dal and BJP, will be at the third position."
According to Jaspal Sidhu, this time the two big issues in Punjab could be drug problem and gangster culture.
He says that a large number of youth are dying due to drug addiction and the increasing influence of gangsters is also a matter of concern for the people.
Jaspal Sidhu believes that there were many circumstances behind the victory of Aam Aadmi Party in 2022. The atmosphere created after the farmers' movement, internal strife in the Congress and resentment against the Akali Dal benefited the party.
He says that the internal fight in Congress created a political vacuum, which benefited the Aam Aadmi Party.
But according to Jaspal Sidhu, this time there is no wave of support for Aam Aadmi Party like there was in the last elections.
According to him, the organizational structure of Congress in Punjab is stronger than that of Aam Aadmi Party.
He says, "Congress is in a better position because it has a strong network in every village and city of Punjab for 50-60 years."
According to Jaspal Sidhu, Aam Aadmi Party does not have a cadre network like Congress. Therefore, by targeting Congress through social media and statements, it is trying to show the contest as directly Congress versus Aam Aadmi Party.
However, he believes that some schemes of the Aam Aadmi Party government are still a political force for him.
These include free electricity, free travel in government buses for women, subsidized tube well electricity for agriculture and purchase of crops in mandis.
According to Jaspal Sidhu, the image of Bhagwant Mann in rural Punjab is not as bad as the criticism that is seen among the urban and educated sections.
Battle for survival for you?
Punjab elections are not just an election for Aam Aadmi Party to save power in one state.
After losing power in Delhi and Rajya Sabha MPs leaving the party, Punjab is the state where Aam Aadmi Party has the largest base to run the government, political resources and organization.
According to Hemant Attri, the financial stability of the party is also linked to the power in Punjab.
He says, "The resources that are necessary for the political survival of the Aam Aadmi Party and the things required to run a party are all coming from Punjab only."
According to him, if the government goes down in Punjab, the party may face a big financial stability crisis.
Jaspal Sidhu also considers this a fight for survival for the Aam Aadmi Party.
However, he says, "the party still has some political strength in the form of acceptance of its government's schemes and Bhagwant Mann's presence in rural areas."
Therefore, the electoral contest in Punjab will not only be about the popularity of Congress and Aam Aadmi Party, but will also decide how strongly the Aam Aadmi Party is able to protect its power and organization.
What will happen to opposition unity in national politics?
The fight in Punjab can also impact national politics.
Both Aam Aadmi Party and Congress have at different times stressed the need for opposition unity against BJP. But the political competition between the two is so deep that even their presence on a common platform has been uncomfortable at times.
Congress's argument has been that Aam Aadmi Party distributes opposition votes by contesting elections in those states where Congress is challenging BJP.
At the same time, Aam Aadmi Party says that Congress itself has failed to challenge BJP and it should cooperate with regional parties instead of political competition.
Hemant Attri says, "The current position of Aam Aadmi Party in national politics is not such that without it any major equation of opposition politics will be affected."
In his assessment, there is a direct political fight between Congress and BJP and other parties remain around these two as per their political convenience.
At the same time, Saba Naqvi believes that the current distance between Congress and Aam Aadmi Party should not be seen only in terms of statements of individual leaders or a fight on social media. This is also a fight for political space and leadership between the two parties.
In such a situation, the question is not just whose government will be formed in Punjab in 2027.
The question is also whether the Aam Aadmi Party will be able to maintain its relevance in national politics by saving power in Punjab and whether the Congress will be ready to accept it again in a broad opposition alliance against the BJP.
Due to the tension that is visible between the two parties at present, there seems to be little possibility of any political agreement in the near future.
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