By Kavita Mistry 
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday launched the party’s official student wing – Association of Students for Alternative Politics (ASAP) at the Constitution Club of India in Delhi. This comes after the party suffered a major setback when 15 of its councillors resigned and announced the formation of the Indraprastha Vikas Party (IVP).
Calling ASAP a “movement for change that begins on campus”, Kejriwal said the initiative aims to mobilise the youth towards an alternative political path that focusses on governance, education and development, rather than traditional party politics.
“Best wishes to all the young friends on the launch of Aam Aadmi Party’s student wing ASAP,” Kejriwal wrote on X (formerly Twitter). He added, “ASAP will not only give a new direction to student politics but will also become a strong platform for Alternative Politics. Through this, we will prepare a young generation that will change the definition of politics and work for the country. The energy of the youth will now be channelised into the politics of change.”
Notably, AAP already has a youth wing – the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS) which has contested student union elections, including those at Delhi University. However, the party clarified that ASAP would now function as a dedicated and parallel wing focused on mobilising students specifically around the principles of alternative politics, while CYSS will continue its activities.
Speaking at the launch, the former Delhi Chief Minister stated the need for a shift from what he described as “mainstream politics”, blaming it for the persistent challenges India faces even after 75 years of independence.
“All the problems of the country are rooted in the kind of politics the Congress, BJP and other traditional parties have practised. It’s this mainstream politics that has failed to solve our problems. Alternative politics is the only solution,” he said.
He also compared AAP’s governance model in Delhi with that of the current BJP-led administration. “It hasn’t even been three months and the BJP government has started ruining government schools,” he alleged.
The launch of AAP’s official student wing comes a couple of days after 15 councillors resigned from the party and announced the formation of a separate party – the Indraprastha Vikas Party (IVP).
The rebel leaders include Mukesh Goel, who previously served as the Leader of the House for Aam Aadmi Party in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). Goel, a municipal councillor with 25 years of experience, joined the AAP in 2021 after quitting the Congress ahead of the last municipal elections.