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The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is facing a major political setback after the Election Commission reportedly recommended the disqualification 20 of its legislators for holding offices of profit.
Though AAP moved the Delhi High Court seeking quashing of the Election Commission’s ‘decision’, the court refused to pass any interim order on the matter.
The Opposition BJP and the Congress have demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal over the poll panel’s reported decision.
While the AAP defended itself saying the poll panel’s functioning had “touched a new low”, the Trinamool Congress said the poll body should not be used to settle political scores.
Currently, the AAP has 62 MLAs in the 70-member Assembly. Although it had won 67 seats in the 2015 elections, four of its MLAs are now under suspension, and the Rajouri Garden seat went to the BJP in a by-poll. So if the 20 MLAs are to be disqualified, or the AAP loses all the segments in the event of bypolls, the party would still have a majority in the House.
AAP spokesperson Raghav Chadha said the poll panel hadn’t even heard the matter on merits and made the “ill-founded recommendations” without hearing the party’s legislators. “Blatant violation of principles of natural justice. This is taking vendetta to next level,” he said.
West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee said a Constitutional body cannot be used for political vendetta. “The 20 AAP MLAs were not even given a hearing by the Election Commission. Most unfortunate. This goes against the principles of natural justice. At this hour we are strongly with Arvind Kejriwal and his team,” she tweeted.
Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari said the poll panel had allowed long adjournments to the MLAs during the hearings. “We welcome the EC decision. Arvind Kejriwal should take responsibility for moral defeat and resign,” he said. He added that the MLAs tried to delay the hearings. “Taking advantage of this delay the AAP succeeded in sending three persons to the Rajya Sabha.”
Congress president Ajay Maken told reporters that the Congress would agitate till the MLAs resign. He urged the AAP to follow the model set by former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who in 2006 resigned as MP and got herself re-elected when then president APJ Abdul Kalam disqualified her on similar grounds.
“Kejriwal has lost all moral rights to continue in the chair. Half of his cabinet ministers and he himself are facing corruption charges. 20 of his party’s MLAs were enjoying ministerial perks will now be disqualified,” he said.
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