Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) conveneor Arvind Kejriwal claimed to be a big fan of freedom fighter-Dalit icon BR Ambedkar.
Kejriwal said that he would take the teachings of Ambedkar to every Indian household.
On the 131st birth anniversary of the father of the Indian Constitution, the Chief Minister declared that the Delhi government's Specialised School of excellence will be known as the BR Ambedkar School of Specialised excellence.
The greatest sons born in India in the last 100-150 years were called by Kejriwal.
Why did this happen? With its election symbol being a broom, the Aam Aadmi Party has always claimed that it supports the cause of the underprivileged.
Kejriwal has a well-crafted strategy to consolidate the support of the dalits in India.
The recent assembly elections in the state of UP show that a large number of the Scheduled Castes moved away from the Bahujan Samaj Party. The community seems to be looking for an alternative leadership as there is a crisis in the politics. It has moved beyond Mayawati and her party to include other parties.
The Congress was hit hard by the emergence of the BSP as it was the only party that did not include Muslims and upper castes. The Aam Aadmi Party will be trying to fill that vacuum.
Perhaps Kejriwal sees an opportunity in the decimation of the BSP in UP and the historic victory of the Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab.
Around 17 percent of India's 1.32 billion population is made up of the Dalits.
As Kejriwal plans to expand the Aam Aadmi Party beyond Delhi and Punjab, he is trying to woo the weaker sections.
This is a change from the days when Mahatma Gandhi was the inspiration and guiding light.
The India Against Corruption (IAC) was inspired by the Gandhian ideology. Anna Hazare, who was the face of the anti-corruption protests, had borrowed a form of protest from Gandhi.
The initial days were the beginning. Kejriwal will fulfill his dream after the Punjab victory. This was similar to the initial day slogan of the BSP. Kejriwal is thought to have replaced Kanshi Ram.
Indian politics has a long history of iconisation and politicisation. With parallels in Dravidian politics, the focus on education of the Aam Aadmi Party is refreshing, and one that will be a cause for concern for other political parties.
A senior journalist named Aurangzeb Naqshbandi has been covering the Congress for 15 years.
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