NEW DELHI, Mar 7: The rift and dissent within the Aam Aadmi Party has widened further with party member from Maharashtra Mayank Gandhi again questioning the functioning of the rookie party which had created a history winning 67 out of total 70 Assembly seats in Delhi polls last month. In his second blog after removal of AAP founding members Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan from its highest decision making panel Political Affairs Committee (PAC) for repeatedly openly criticising party convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Mr Gandhi claimed that some members of the party, especially those in Delhi, had planned the duo’s removal from the party itself.
“As a disciplined worker, I am generally non-confrontational and have never spoken a word against the movement nor party since the past four years outside the appropriate forum. But now is the time to take a stand,” Mr Gandhi said in his blog late last night even as he asserted that he was not doing all these to weaken the AAP or its leadership, but to strengthen the party and the principles that it has espoused. Mr Gandhi termed ‘completely wrong’ a gag order by the party’s National Executive to the members not to reveal detail of the March 4 meeting which axed Mr Yadav and Mr Bhushan. Mr Kejriwal did not attend the meeting in the national capital. The AAP leader from Maharashtra further said his blogs on NE meeting were a well thought out and conscious decision to uphold the higher principle of transparency but he paid a price for this and a ‘small group of party decision makers in Delhi’ have already removed him from the informal BBM group.
Mr Gandhi said attacks have begun against him from AAP member Ashish Khetan and others and some ‘dissatisfied’ members from Maharashtra unit have started giving interviews against him, some old cases are being re-opened.
“A concerted attempt is being made in social media to call me anti-party and anti-AK (Arvind Kejriwal). The party may decide not to fight BMC elections or delay the decision for the same, leadership of Maharashtra will be challenged and discredited by some individuals, media leaks will be made. More will come and I will be finally humiliated so much that I will quit,” he added. Mr Gandhi said it was planned for Mr Yadav and Mr Bhushan, but they overturned that plan by staying inside the party. “Let me see if I can withstand the muck that will be thrown. But, my being in the party or not is immaterial, if by then, I am able to bring in some changes in the functioning of the party and empowered the volunteers,” he said appealing the volunteers to demonstrate how they are the real owners of the party and bring back the founding principles in the party. He also said the walls built between the volunteers, the committees and their “non-transparent decisions” have alienated the workers from the party.
“Volunteers must propose that all NE meetings be video recorded and volunteers allowed to view the same. Mr Gandhi also clarified that his blogs were not against any individual nor a challenge to the leadership. “Let me reiterate, this is not any rebellion, nor against our leadership, nor to seek personal attention. I truly believe that AK is the hope for the country and I have learnt almost everything from him. I will continue to avoid going to the press,” he added. (UNI)
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