 "Why Swati Maliwal's Draupadi 'cheerharan' post went viral after Kejriwal's defeat")
After ruling Delhi for a decade, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) suffered a sweeping defeat in the 2025 Assembly elections.
The party’s convenor and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal conceded his loss and paved the way for the Bhartiya Janata Party to return to power in Delhi after a 27-year hiatus.
But amid this political upheaval, a cryptic social media post about Draupadi’s ‘cheeharan’ by Swati Maliwal has stirred a storm online. The AAP Rajya Sabha MP was once a close ally of Kejriwal, but now she shows no signs of holding back against her own party.
So, what exactly did she say? And what’s fuelling this apparent bitterness towards her party? Let’s take a closer look.
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Maliwal’s veiled dig at AAP
As the Aam Aadmi Party headed towards a crushing electoral loss, Maliwal shared an image on X featuring a painting depicting the ‘cheerharan’ (disrobing) of Draupadi from the Hindu epic Mahabharata in which Pandavas lost a bet to their usurping cousins.
Draupadi’s disrobing from the Mahabharata is a powerful image that is often used to symbolise betrayal and injustice.
— Swati Maliwal (@SwatiJaiHind) February 8, 2025
But she didn’t stop there. Adding fuel to the fire, Maliwal followed up with a pointed remark: “Ahankar Ravan ka bhi nahi bacha tha” (Even Ravan couldn’t save himself in the end). And just like that, the internet erupted.
अहंकार रावण का भी नहीं बचा था…
— Swati Maliwal (@SwatiJaiHind) February 8, 2025
One said, “One woman solely destroyed AAP wave. Kudos,” referring to her vocal stance against former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s policies over the past months. Another comment called her, “the game changer of the Delhi elections.”
The growing rift between Maliwal & AAP
Maliwal was a long-time associate of the AAP chief, having worked with him since 2006 and served as the chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women. However, her relationship with the party and its leadership, particularly with Arvind Kejriwal, has been fraught with tension over the years.
The first signs of strain appeared in 2016 when Maliwal faced corruption allegations related to Delhi Commission for Women recruitments. Though the case led nowhere, AAP’s silence was a tell-all—her once-solid standing within the party had begun to weaken.
Then, in May 2024, the rift exploded into full public view when Maliwal accused Bibhav Kumar, a close aide of Kejriwal, of assaulting her at the Chief Minister’s official residence. She alleged that during a visit to discuss pressing issues, she was “beaten brutally” in the drawing room while the CM was present in the house.
CCTV footage of Delhi CM drawing room
— Rupashree Nanda (@rupashreenanda) May 17, 2024
Listen to what #SwatiMaliwal says pic.twitter.com/KNWlWpFQFs
“The attack on me was pre-planned, and the party leadership failed to stand by me,” Maliwal alleged. She further claimed that after filing her complaint, AAP used its resources to discredit her, isolate her, and malign her character.
She claimed that despite the serious allegations, Kumar continued to accompany Kejriwal on campaign trips until he was eventually taken into custody.
The divide deepened further during the Haryana assembly elections in October 2024 when Maliwal accused Kejriwal of betraying the opposition INDIA Bloc by campaigning in Haryana to settle scores with the Congress, thereby diverting votes away from the alliance.
सिर्फ़ कांग्रेस से बदला लेने के लिए हरियाणा में उतरे। मुझपे BJP एजेंट होने के झूठे आरोप लगाए, ख़ुद आज INDIA अलायन्स से ग़द्दारी करके INC की वोट काट रहे हैं!
— Swati Maliwal (@SwatiJaiHind) October 8, 2024
सब छोड़ो, विनेश फोगाट तक को हराने के लिए प्रत्याशी उतारा।
क्यों ऐसा हाल आ गया है कि अपने गृह राज्य में ज़मानतें नहीं बचा…
She further questioned AAP’s struggles, saying, “Why are you unable to save your deposits in your home state? There is still time. Give up your ego, remove the veil from your blurry eyes, stop doing drama and work for the people.”
In the lead-up to the Delhi elections, Maliwal was detained by the police last month after she dumped three mini-truckloads of garbage outside the residence of Kejriwal at 5, Ferozeshah Road in protest, demanding action on the government’s failure to clean the Yamuna River.
She also visited Vikaspuri, exposing Delhi’s worsening garbage crisis, clogged drains, and crumbling infrastructure—issues AAP had once vowed to fix.
After her release, Maliwal told reporters, “For the past ten years, Arvind Kejriwal has ensured that Delhi becomes a giant garbage dump. Roads are broken, drains are overflowing, and waste is piling up everywhere. Women and children are forced to live in unhygienic conditions, and yet the government does nothing.”
With input from agencies
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