New Delhi: The AAP looks set to remove dissident leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan in the party’s national council meeting on Saturday amid continued bitterness and acrimonious public spats between the two warring sides.
Less than two months after the Aam Aadmi Party stormed to power in Delhi, there have been claims and counter-claims from the two camps, showing the deep cracks that have surfaced in the party and setting the stage for a possible showdown.
Senior AAP leader Ashutosh on Friday said the possibility of a truce with dissident leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan was “remote”.
“To be honest and frank, the possibility of truce or peace is remote because they (Bhushan and Yadav) are insisting on removal of Kejriwal (as national convener) which is not possible,” Ashutosh told NDTV.
“If you are part of a party, you have to accept its leader,” he added.
Another party leader Kumar Vishwas called on Bhushan and Yadav to leave the party “gracefully” if nothing was working out.
“If nothing is working then you (Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav) should depart gracefully,” he told ANI.
Vishwas added that there were some forces behind the rift in the party, which is showing no signs of abating yet.
“Personal jealousy and frustration is there. But there are also some forces for the rift within the AAP,” he said.
Claims
On Thursday, the party said it has accepted the resignation of Yadav and Bhushan from the 21-member national executive. The duo, however, claimed that they never offered to quit from the body.
They have already been removed from the political affairs committee (PAC) for “challenging” Kejriwal’s leadership.
In an open letter to Kejriwal two days ahead of AAP’s crucial national council meeting, Bhushan and Yadav had said the the message conveyed to them during reconciliation talks was that either they should resign gracefully or face removal from the national executive.
Bhushan and Yadav accused Kejriwal of initiating the talks only to secure their resignation from the national executive and alleged that he was not serious about the major issues raised by them.
Leaders close to Kejriwal, on the other hand, said talks failed as Bhushan and Yadav were adamant on Kejriwal’s removal from the post of party’s national convenor while making it clear that there will be no further talks with the duo.
“Talks failed. Prashant and Yogendra adamant on Arvind’s removal from the chair of national convener,” Ashutosh tweeted on Thursday.
In another tweet, he said, “Party is willing to accept all demands of Prashant/Yogendra, not removal of Arvind. Why PB/YY are insistent on Arvind’s removal? I am amazed.”
After a meeting of the AAP’s political affairs committee, Ashish Khetan, known to be a Kejriwal loyalist, said there will be no further talks with Bhushan and Yadav and that all the issues will be taken up at the national council meeting on Saturday.
Khetan said all the communications sent to the party leadership by Yadav and Bhushan will be presented before the national council after which a decision on their fate will be taken.
Counter-claims
In the mounting war of words, Bhushan and Yadav denied the charges made against them. A defiant Bhushan added that Kejriwal wanted only “yes men” around him and not those with independent views.
A founder member of the AAP and a leading Supreme Court advocate, Bhushan told the media that it was a lie to say that he and Yadav wanted to see Kejriwal step down as the national convenor.
“This is a lie, we never made this demand,” he said. “All we have asked for is transparency in the party.”
Yadav, a known political expert, agreed and asked Kejriwal loyalists to produce his resignation letter — if he had indeed resigned.
“What is being passed off as ‘resignation letter’ is a note for internal negotiations,” Yadav said in a tweet.
He said it was “ridiculous” to say he and Bhushan demanded Kejriwal’s removal as the national convenor.
Yadav added, “I hear funny news about the PAC accepting our resignation. Will my colleagues please produce a copy of the resignation letter?”
Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan will hold a press conference on Friday.
The AAP has been embroiled in an internal tussle after taking power in Delhi last month, with the pro-Kejriwal camp accusing Bhushan and Yadav of trying to oust the chief minister. Both have denied the charge.
