Supporters of the Aam Aadmi Party pose as they offer sweets to a poster bearing the portrait of Arvind Kejriwal.
New Delhi:
As the new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won 28 seats in the Delhi Assembly elections yesterday, a large number of supporters, including some NRIs, gathered at the party's Hanuman Road office in Delhi for the celebrations.
One of these NRIs was Arnav Aggarwal, a 25-year-old engineer who had come all the way from London to support the party.
Arnav had been supporting the newly formed party since its very inception. It was through news and social media that he had first known about this "movement" going on in his country.
He recounts that it was the sense of patriotism that led him to support the Kejriwal-led party by financial means and by creating awareness on social media to garner support for it.
"Everyone feels like doing something for their country and when you live in a foreign nation, this feeling grows way too much. This was my way to contribute to my motherland," said Arnav.
Born and brought up in Delhi, he had moved to United Kingdom four years ago also used to make a large number of phone calls to random numbers in Delhi to seek support for the party.
"Making the calls was difficult initially, as people would disconnect immediately thinking that it was a marketing call. However later, to my surprise, people would hook on to the calls after I said 'I am calling from the Aam Aadmi Party," said Arnav.
He was here to witness the success of the movement which had over time turned into a political party.
Arnav was here to witness the moment that according to him and many is a defining moment in Indian politics.
However, unlike other staunch supporters of the party, Arnav wasn't wearing 'Gandhi topi', the quintessential AP headgear.
He wasn't over-zealous but was happy that his "little contribution" has made a mark.
"Obviously, I am elated. The Aam Aadmi Party has won many seats. I am happy about what happened, this will go down as a golden moment in the history. But my only concern is will AAP be able to deliver on the promises that they have made," said Arnav.
Arnav, whose family resides in Faridabad, will move back to London after a few days and said he will continue his support for AAP and hopes that the party goes national soon.