AAP Ke Volunteers

Author : Vansh Saluja, New Delhi

Some call them anarchists, some escapists, some opportunists and some maniacs but in true sense these people are the stupid common men wanting to clean their homes- as the famous line from the movie 'A Wednesday' goes. Led by their leader, a frail man wearing a loose checked shirt, the Aam Aadmi Party definitely has something to offer to the disenchanted voters. The volunteers always form the back-bone of an organization, be it a political party or an NGO. And this party has them in plenty. Ranging from vegetable vendors to Chartered Accountants, the party flaunts a strong volunteer force within less than year of its formation.

Who are these volunteers? Who coaxed them to join a political party? The answer lies on the topis they wear. They are the aam aadmi, people who had never imagined in their life that they would be working for a party, not for political power but to bring about a systematic change. "I wasn’t forced by anyone to join AAP, I made my own choice. I joined so that all the good people can come together to put an end to this slavery" says Amit, an active AAP volunteer. Why is that people perceived volunteers and workers from Congress-BJP to be goons and thieves but people from AAP to be 'good'? Why is that people try to avoid a crowd of rowdy party workers of Congress-BJP but try to be a part of a crowd of 'selfless' AAP workers? These assumptions are not without facts. Be it the signature campaigns, cleanliness drives or candlelight vigils organized by AAP, locals have always been willing to join the workers sporting the 'main aam aadmi hoon' topi than the workers of some other party.

A unique feature that separates them from other parties is that they use the national flag which arouses a feeling of nationalism among people. It is a constant reminder of the fact that their loyalty lies with the nation and not with the party. Who wouldn't want to be part of the crowd which waves the national flag than a party flag? The selfless work which they do counters the claim of 'some' who say that they are opportunists or maniacs. When the 5-year old girl was brutally raped in the capital, it was the AAP who went to her rescue not to score cheap political points but because the victim's family contacted them. If it would have been for Congress or BJP, they would have first assessed the political 'benefit' they would get by raising the issue. The very fact that the victim's family contacted the AAP by "looking at a poster stuck on a wall" and the party responding swiftly shows the stark difference between the approachability of the so-called party of 'anarchists' and the party of so-called democrats and secularists.

It does not stop here. There's an instance of 'good work' done by AAP workers almost everyday. Then be it getting an FIR registered for an illiterate or collecting food grains for those affected by Maharashtra drought. The Aam Aadmi Party is doing full justice to what its leader says, "Changing the rules of the game". The conventional parties may not be worrying with this new kind of politics but AAP is surely making them uncomfortable. They have never experienced this kind politics in their long political career. For them it has always been about getting the numbers and making passionate speeches. Be it the AAP leaders or workers, it never seems like they are politicians or are in politics. All with humble dwellings and simple life, they all are the true personification of RK Laxman's 'Common Man'. Although more of an angry common man agitated by the problems it faces. The problems are common to all but raising voice against it is uncommon.

' I've always been skeptical of the politicians but initiatives undertaken by the Aam Aadmi Party pump in some fresh air and a ray of hope that someday India will change, and the change will be brought out by people among us' says Rohan Singh, a Delhi-based student. If I'm allowed to tweak Dushyant Kumar's poem which they often recite- 'sirf hungama khada karna unka maksad nahi, unki koshish hai ki yeh soorat badalni chahiye'. It has boiled down to the fight between good and the bad, which side are you on?