AAP rift: ’Adamant’ Arvind Kejriwal wants Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan out of party&

TNN

New Delhi, 26 Mar 2015: Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal is adamant about ensuring the removal of senior leaders Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav from AAP’s national executive, ANI reported on Thursday. 

 

Kejriwal has also refused to take any call related to party work as long as the duo are in the party, the sources add. 

 

The AAP’s parliamentary action committee, meanwhile, is scheduled to meet on Thursday evening at Kejriwal’s residence, where a resolution will be moved in the national council to remove Yadav and Bhushan.

 

Sources said Yadav and Bhushan made it clear that there was no valid ground for them to step down from the 21 member national executive and the rival camp should instead address the issues raised by them. 

 

Last ditch efforts by party Lokpal Admiral Ramdas to push for reconciliation failed to make any headway with both camps sticking to their stands. 

 

However, Ilyas Azmi, member of the political affairs committee (PAC) said patch up efforts were still underway. "We will keep trying till the last minute," he said after the PAC meeting here. 

 

Those backing Bhushan and Yadav said that the two leaders will not concede to the demands of Kejriwal. 

 

The internal rift figured in the PAC, the highest decision making body, where majority of the members reasserted their strong support to Kejriwal. 

 

The party’s NC is expected to deliberate on the issues in the party. Both Kejriwal and Yadav are trying to consolidate volunteers support ahead of the meeting. 

 

The talks that began last week with the aim of bridging the trust deficit between the two groups after Yadav and Bhushan were ousted from the PAC showed no signs of rapprochement. 

 

Yadav and Bhushan have been pressing for resolution of key issues like implementation of critical matters such as volunteer participation in AAP’s decision making, autonomy to its state units, bringing the party under the ambit of RTI and appointment of Lokayukta at the state level.