Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu
On a day when AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal took oath as the eighth Chief Minister of Delhi, senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu said that the party had made a tactical mistake by not going in for the Assembly polls in Delhi immediately after the Lok Sabha election last year.
"We made a tactical mistake. I have no hesitation in accepting it. After the Lok Sabha election, we could have gone for an Assembly election immediately; we would have won hands down in Delhi. But a lot of time has passed," Mr Naidu told reporters.
He said that the BJP has to introspect and find means to expand its base further.
"The Delhi election is definitely a setback undoubtedly, but the BJP's base in Delhi is intact. Our vote base remains intact," he said, adding that the votes of other parties got transferred to the AAP.
"There is a lesson for the BJP to learn in this election. The lesson is even if all other parties join together, you must be in a position to win the election. Earlier, there used to be four-cornered, five cornered contests but now some of the parties have decided that they would extend their support base to other parties," Mr Naidu said.
He said that the AAP promised reduction in rates of electricity and water, which the BJP couldn't.
"We could not say it because we know the financial health of Delhi," the Urban Development Minister said, while wishing the AAP best of luck for the future.