Cheer up Kejriwal! The year 2022 was not that bad for Aam Aadmi Party

Gujarat: Though the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) retained power in the state for a record seventh straight term, the AAP party emerged to be a tough challenger to the BJP in key constituencies. The Kejriwal-led party had won  five seats, strongly establishing its (maiden) entry there, while the BJP crossed the majority mark by winning 156 of 182 seats. Even though the Congress remained at second position in the state, it got shrunk to just 17 seats, again thanks to AAP's aggressive push to split the votes. Making a powerful debut, AAP was believed to have made inroads majorly into the Congress's vote bank and sweeping aside the party in tribal belts.

Himachal Pradesh: The AAP won zero seats in the Himachal Pradesh assembly elections — showing that the party's fate in Himachal was exactly opposite of how it had fared in Gujarat. While Gujarat made it a national party, Himachal decided to discard it entirely. However, it had approximately a percent vote share.

Delhi MCD polls: The AAP won 134 of 250 wards, overthrowing the BJP and forming a "double engine" government in Delhi.

Goa: The AAP had bagged two seats in Goa Assembly Elections 2022, gaining recognition in the state - a milestone that brought it step closer to getting a national party status.

Punjab: The party made history by emerging victorious in 92 of the total 117 seats in Punjab. With the landslide win, the AAP ousted the Congress which was facing harsh times due to infighting and anti-incumbancy just ahead of the polls. The AAP had decimated the national and regional parties to get the historic mandate.

Uttar Pradesh: The AAP vote share in Uttar Pradesh polls was less than NOTA (none of the above), according to report in Outlook. The party had a vote share of 0.38 percent — less than the NOTA option, which polled 0.69 percent of the total votes counted till 5.45 pm, as per the Election Commission data.

AAP leader Satyendar Jain, who was also Delhi's health minister, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering cases in May 2022. According to sources, the ED claimed that Jain had used the money to buy land, and pay loans taken to buy farm land near Delhi.

Jain is currently lodged in Tihar Jail. He recently made headlines after leaked videos showed him relishing "proper food" and getting a massage.

After Satyendar Jain, the guns were trained on Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. He was under the scanner for alleged deliberate and gross procedural lapses which provided undue benefits to the tender process for liquor licensees for the year 2021-22.

Few months back, the ED had arrested Vijay Nair, reportedly an AAP worker, in connection with the alleged money laundering probe into Delhi government’s liquor policy. In September, AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan was arrested by the Delhi Police's Anti-Corruption Branch, Indian Today had reported.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Lieutenant Governor (L-G) VK Saxena have been at loggerhead ever since the latter was appointed as the 22nd (Vice) Governor of Delhi in May this year. The recent tiff between the two was over the AAP-led Delhi government's new liquor policy. Saxena had then called for a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the revamped excise policy in Delhi. Earlier, on July 21, L-G Saxena had denied permission to CM Kejriwal to attend the ‘World Cities Summit’.

Whether it was for the these big and small tussles with the L-G or with other political parties who don't skip a chance to throw allegations at several AAP leaders, the year 2022 for Kejriwal and his party proved to be like a roller-coaster - with many bumps and big cheers. And with 2024 general elections ahead, all eyes are on Kejriwal to see whether he will fulfil his national ambitions.