Merely an hour before the big opposition meeting in Patna – hosted by Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar and attended by 30 leaders from 15 parties – the AAP accused the Congress of making a compromise with the ruling BJP for presidency. The party’s Delhi spokesperson, Priyanka Kakkar, said the Congress needed to clear its stand on the matter.
The statement has not gone down well with the Congress leadership and said this did not look good for opposition unity. Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge told chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, when he asked him about the party’s stand on the Delhi ordinance, that there was a process to be followed before making such decisions and the party will make its stand clear in the coming days.
After the meeting, there was a press conference by the opposition parties that Kejriwal, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, AAP leaders Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chadha skipped. Instead, the party issued a statement: “The Congress, a national party that takes a stand on almost all issues, is yet to make its position on the black ordinance public. However, the Delhi and Punjab units of the Congress have announced that the party should support the Modi government on this issue.”
“Today, during the like-minded party meeting in Patna, many parties urged the Congress to publicly denounce the black ordinance. However, the Congress refused to do so,” it said.
It added: “The silence of the Congress raises suspicion on its real intention. In personal discussions, senior Congress leaders have hinted that their party might informally or formally abstain from voting on the issue in the Rajya Sabha. Its abstention from voting on this issue will help the BJP immensely in furthering its attack on Indian democracy.”
The statement also pointed out that till the Congress took a stand on the issue, it will be difficult for the AAP to take part in future meetings of the opposition. “The black ordinance is anti-constitutional, anti-federalism, and outright undemocratic. Furthermore, it seeks to reverse the Hon’ble Supreme Court’s judgment on the issue and is an affront to the judiciary. The hesitation and refusal to act as a team player by the Congress, especially on an issue as important as this one, would make it very difficult for the AAP to be part of any alliance that includes the Congress. Until the Congress publicly denounces the black ordinance and declares that all 31 of its MPs will oppose the ordinance in the Rajya Sabha, it will be difficult for AAP to participate in future meetings of like-minded parties where the Congress is a participant,” it said.
Congress sources suggested that the meeting in Patna was to discuss strategies for the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections and not to discuss only one issue. “We are in a process to reach a consensus on the issue and, once we do, we will inform the AAP. Issuing such a statement is unfortunate. We will be hosting the next opposition meeting in Shimla, it is up to the AAP if it wants to be part of it,” sources said.
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