AAP has been a quick disappointment

It's not often that I get a chance to feel vindicated! A few weeks ago when MufflerMan devotees had voted him to power I had ruefully admitted that my tribe - comprising those not comfortable with him - was in a minority. With other like-minded people I had also urged the people of Delhi not to be complacent and to remain vigilant because this unlimited power handed over to the MufflerMan's mob could have serious consequences. Not just for Delhi, but for the AAP, too. We need to become the street fighters that the AAP used to be before it morphed into just another establishment group with vested interests and the domination of one individual. Alas it already seems to have done so.

With older parties, this trend has evolved over a period of time. That the AAP so quickly succumbed to this temptation, and did not allow dissent or inner party democracy to grow is worrying. And the underhanded manner in which this was done makes it clear yet again that it has some rogue elements who are appreciated by the top echelons.

Among the first moves of this bunch has been the ritual humiliation and sidelining of two of its main intellectuals ( perhaps the only two ) that the party contains. The exit of Prashant Bhushan from the AAP's Parliamentary Affairs Committee is particularly ironic. It is he and his father who idealistically had invested the first two crore rupees to built the party. It was a generous donation and coming from these two firebrand lawyers carried its own weighty message.

This was the financial oxygen that was used by the MufflerMan when he needed it. Now it is alleged that he used Anna Hazare with the same cynicism. And thus it is hardly surprising that while the current fracas was taking place, he maintained a studied silence.

But the story isn't over yet , as now he is using us, the people of Delhi. One however hopes that the recent events will be the wake-up call that Delhi needs. Especially because while Prashant Bhushan might lack a popular following among the masses, the other ousted ideologue who dared question MufflerMan has a pretty hefty following of his own. Yogendra Yadav is no pushover, and unlike Prashant, he has devoted most of his time to building this party.

He might have been manipulated out of the politics of it, but one knows that while Yogendra is a long distance runner he is also scrupulously honest and unlike many of the recently elected MLAs, will not succumb to any kind of temptation. MufflerMan of course has already spread his wings and taken off for a "naturopathy" cure before he has had a chance to offer the suffering proletariat any cure for the various ills that Delhi reels under.

Fortunately, the muffler is beginning to unravel, showing the real power-hungry side of the MufflerMan and his mob. The good thing is that it has happened early, and alarm bells are already ringing among the shaken faithful.