Even before the formation of AAP, when he was still with Anna Hazare’s India Against Corruption, Arvind Kejriwal spewed venom at the Congress as well as all politicians, irrespective of their affiliation. He described politicians in the most contemptuous terms, using the choicest words of abuse.Though many who supported his party blanched at his remarks, it went well with the masses. The greater the number of scams that were exposed at regular intervals, the more strident became his language and severe his criticism.It was common knowledge in the inner circle of Hazare that Kejriwal was the hardliner in the team. He was tenacious, uncompromising and unforgiving in his demands while dealing with Congress mediators at the Centre. He was often seen by his more moderate colleagues as not open to debate and dialogue.But they acquiesced — they probably overlooked or more likely were subsumed by the flame of idealism that burned through him. They may well have been swept away by his irrepressible zeal to take the political class head on and transform the nature of politics in India.Once AAP took birth and Kejriwal parted ways with Anna, his virulent attack of Congress in particular and politicians in general intensified. In the run-up to elections in Delhi, it was probably necessary as a tactic to tap into the seething anger against the incumbent party.Indeed, his attack touched a chord with the ‘aam aadmi’ and the youth. As we saw, it was a brilliant move. The sheer audacity of taking on the mightiest of the land — whether it was Congress president Sonia Gandhi or her coterie, or the big bosses of BJP and the feared Reliance Industries, he spared none — added credibility and gave impetus to the movement.In all ages, people have looked up to a David who can take on an evil Goliath. Today, Kejriwal happens to be India’s David.Kejriwal’s uncanny ability to take up issues that mattered most to the middle class and the masses — corruption, inflation and Jan Lokpal —paid rich dividends. In that context, AAP’s ascent in Delhi was a certainty. So far so good.Kejriwal is now Delhi’s chief minister. His party’s image and consequently his own has lost a little sheen because of what appears to be a sudden yielding to temptations of high office or lack of prudence and maturity in the way the whole episode was handled. Let’s look back at what happened. After the Delhi poll results, Kejriwal continued the assaults on BJP and Congress.He categorically said AAP would neither lend nor take their support. His associates continued to shout from rooftops sanctimoniously and even a tad pompously that the Congress was a ‘pariah’ and BJP no better. Which may well be true in the present perception of the public.But having sworn such sentiments of hatred toward the policies and venal character of the leaders of those parties, AAP should have stuck to its guns.But within a week of launching countless barbs against Congress, AAP made a complete U-turn and has slipped into bed with the same people and party it detested and denounced. Despite clever semantics, which is the trademark of traditional parties when they flip-flop without batting an eyelid, AAP has raised eyebrows by taking Congress support.AAP has subjected itself to avoidable criticism that the lure of power and its trappings may have been too irresistible even for the new messiah and his colleagues who won a mandate at the hustings riding on the plank of clean politics and honesty. In other words, AAP could have done without the ‘never say never’ aphorism in politics.The laboured explanations of the articulate spokespersons of AAP do not wash easily with critics. Those attacks against the Congress now seem totally unnecessary. In the tempestuous and meteoric ascent to power, AAP has forgotten that discretion is the better part of valour.What could have worked better was to be candid and a little subdued and graceful in victory. They could have announced that they would evaluate all the pros and cons and calmly deliberate and arrive at a considered decision, instead of getting carried away in the heat of the moment and jumping the gun and shooting from the hip self-righteously or announcing populist measures in haste.Even before the swearing-in, there were rumblings within AAP that the wily old Congress may have outmanoeuvered a party of novices. They enticed them with a bait and may have tripped them by sending ambivalent messages of their support.There is now a lurking apprehension in the public’s mind and among ardent supporters and admirers about AAP.More worryingly, there is a tinge of disappointment at the sudden somersault of AAP as they saw in that party the idealism that other degenerate parties sorely lacked.A troubling question comes to mind — is AAP turning to the same old politics of getting into bed with anyone to come to power with the excuse that only if they are in the saddle they will be able to clean up the Augean stables?As Ronald Reagan quipped, “It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first.”India is a festering den of corrupt men. It will be a grave tragedy if Kejriwal and AAP too go the way of other movements that promised much and failed to deliver.Indeed, the whole of India is looking up to AAP to usher in a new kind of politics of honesty, transparency, inner-party democracy and simplicity. People are fervently hoping AAP will deliver the country from crass and unscrupulous politics.India needs fearless and honest leaders like Kejriwal and Anna Hazare and a party like AAP, which has already changed the nature of politics and political discourse. AAP is the need of the hour.(The writer is Air Deccan's founder who joined AAP)