The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) distanced itself from the INDIA bloc on Friday, saying it is not part of the opposition alliance anymore and questioning the Congress party’s role in leading it.
The remarks made by Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh came ahead of an online meeting of the leaders of the INDIA bloc parties scheduled to be held on Saturday evening to discuss the prevailing political situation in the country.
The meeting comes right before the Monsoon session of Parliament, which starts on Monday. It will be held after a long gap since the constituents of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) last deliberated on the country’s political situation jointly.
“The AAP has cleared its stand. The INDIA bloc was for the (2024) Lok Sabha polls. We fought the Delhi and Haryana Assembly polls on our own. We are going to fight the Bihar election solo. We fought the bypolls in Punjab and Gujarat all by ourselves. The AAP is not part of the INDIA. We will strongly raise issues in the Lok Sabha. We have always played the role of a strong opposition,” Singh told PTI Videos.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led party contested the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Delhi and Haryana in an alliance with the Congress.
Slamming the Congress, Singh questioned its role in leading the opposition bloc.
“It is not child’s play. Did they hold any meeting after the Lok Sabha polls? Was there any initiative to expand the INDIA bloc? Sometimes they criticise Akhilesh Yadav, sometimes Uddhav Thackeray and sometimes Mamata Banerjee. The INDIA should have been united. The Congress is the biggest party of the bloc. But did it play a role (in ensuring opposition unity)?” he asked.
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On the AAP’s role in opposing the government, Singh said the party has always been strongly opposing the ruling dispensation.
“We will do it with full strength. The INDIA can do whatever it wants,” he added.
After winning the Visavadar Assembly bypoll in Gujarat, Kejriwal had alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had sent the Congress to defeat his party by cutting its votes.
“When the Congress failed, the BJP even reprimanded it. The INDIA bloc was only for the Lok Sabha polls. Now, there is no alliance from our side,” Kejriwal said earlier this month.
