During his first term, the 49 days of infamous-turned-famous rule, Arvind Kejriwal was all over Delhi. He was the chief minister then, with Congress' support, and tried to live the big life in his own possible way.
No problem in that. He was allowed to do that as long as he enjoyed the elements of 'benefit of doubt', even if he meant to be imitating his predecessors.
Benefits of doubt - that he was an activist-turned politician who was trying to cleanse the system of its malaise and even if he imitated his predecessors, it was more like a human aberration.
He was termed dictatorial. He was termed a man who was turning the most successful political reform movement of the recent political history of India into a one-man show. He was described as a person who did what he wished. He was described as a person who could not bear a 'no'.
But he had the benefit of doubt, which when met with non-performance of the BJP government during the Central Rule of Delhi through Lieutenant-Governor, created a mix that threw the BJP away giving Arvind Kejriwal an absolute rule.
And this time, he has no benefit of doubt - none of its elements.
And whatever that were there in the name of 'benefit of doubt', are now being seen as the elements of a hardcore politician, whose only goal was to become a politician similar to those who happened to be the main point behind his political plunge.
He had taken the political plunge to cleanse the politics of its malaise but the Indian politics of the day has taken him in its strides.
The whole Delhi, like the earlier time, has again been inundated with Kejriwal's images, like his predecessors, and we can safely say that this is personal choice to do so - sans benefit of doubt.
He had deserted Delhi on February 14, 2014 and in a fiery display, again took the reins of the city-state exactly a year after, on February 14, 2015, and again completed 49 days - earlier this month.
But there were no initiatives like the last time. There was no rush to sound pro-people this time. Instead, the signals so far has told a routine political establishment with a chief minister and his aides who settle in new offices and new homes like a routine politician does.
With elements that clearly tell us that Kejriwal cannot take a 'no', is clearly dictatorial in his mindset, is turning his party into a one-man show (and a one-state, one-election phenomenon thus) and without elements that gave him the 'benefit of doubt' so far!
With inner party controversies to follow the Aam Aadmi Party post its massive electoral victory in Delhi that resulted in the ouster of the two senior-most founder members, Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan (with low to no benefit of doubt when compared with Kejriwal of earlier tenure) and disillusionment of several other names of the civic society who had lend their voices to the movement when it turned political.