New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday claimed the resignation of Delhi minister Raaj Kumar Anand vindicated its stand that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest was aimed at finishing the party.
Addressing a press conference, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh alleged that the BJP was using the ED and the CBI to “break our ministers and MLAs”.
“It is ‘agnipariksha’ (trial by fire) of AAP ministers and MLAs,” he said.
Anand, who was holding various portfolios including Social Welfare, resigned from the Delhi cabinet and quit the AAP, alleging Dalits were not given representation in the party.
Singh asserted that although the resignation may demotivate some party workers, but the Aam Aadmi Party will largely stand strong against attempts to break the organisation.
Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that Anand may have been threatened to quit AAP.
“Time and again we said that the intention behind arresting Arvind Kejriwal was to break the party and governments of Delhi and Punjab. Many of our colleagues will feel that we hate Raaj Kumar (Anand) and will call him dishonest and cheater. We will not say any such thing….
“Not everyone is Sanjay Singh. I believe that he was scared,” Bharadwaj said.
Singh said that earlier the BJP used to call Anand corrupt “when a raid was conducted against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) but now the party will welcome him into its fold with garlands”.
Announcing his resignation, Anand said, “This party (AAP) doesn’t respect Dalit MLAs, councillors and ministers. In such circumstances, all Dalits feel cheated. We live in an inclusive society, but it is not wrong to talk about proportion. It is difficult for me to remain in the party with all these things.”
He also took a swipe at Kejriwal, who is in Tihar jail after being remanded in judicial custody in an excise policy-linked money laundering case and has failed to get any relief from the Delhi High Court.
“Till yesterday, we were under the impression that we are being framed, but after the High Court verdict, it seems that there is something wrong at our end,” he said.
“From the Jantar Mantar, Arvind Kejriwal had said that the country will change once politics changes. The politics hasn’t changed but the politician has changed,” Anand, who is an MLA from the Patel Nagar constituency, said.
