New Delhi: General secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Prakash Karat , on Thursday compared the Arvind Kejriwal -led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to the communists.

“The virtues that AAP claims for itself—a clean image, incorruptibility, denial of perks and privileges of power, and funding based on people’s contributions—are all part of the style and practice of the communists from the outset," Karat said in an article in People’s Democracy, the party’s organ.

Karat gave examples of crowd funding, Left leaders leading simple lives and refusing government accommodation. “The citizens of Delhi have appreciated the refusal of Arvind Kejriwal and his other ministers not to seek large official accommodations and to stick to their modest housing. This is the tradition set by communist leaders in public office," he said.

On Thursday, AAP’s minority government in Delhi won the trust vote in the assembly with support from Congress, Janata Dal (United) and an independent member.

In his article, Karat also said that while the AAP’s success in the Delhi election was a positive development, the party has remained silent on several policy issues. “The involvement of a normally apolitical middle class and attracting the youth to political activism with idealism is a singular achievement. There are lots of expectations from the AAP government, which in Delhi does not even have the full powers of a state government," he said.

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