With the AAP facing an internal crisis, the Organiser editorial takes a swipe at the party: “Despite the claims of a new and fresh experiment in Indian politics… [the] AAP formation is more about [the] selfish power game of some individuals… With the ouster of Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav from the party’s PAC, the claims of AAP being different has not only faltered, it’s also proved to be worse than any other AAM party”. The editorial points out that it was an experiment by a group of NGOs “working with their own single-point agendas and ambitious ‘social workers’, supported by left-hearted individuals like Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav disgruntled with mainstream Left politics. It recalls that Yadav and Bhushan had raised concerns about two issues: First, “44 candidates who fought on AAP’s symbol were crorepatis and 23 with criminal antecedents… Second, AAP is curbing its own activists’ dissent regarding transparency on financial matters.” When questions were raised about the source of money for its “extravagant election campaign”, the party removed the list of contributors from its website.
AAP’S CONTRADICTIONS
J&K AGENDA
The Organiser cover story reminds the BJP-PDP coalition in Jammu and Kashmir that the “real acid test” and a true measure of political maturity would be the deliverance on “tangible performance indicators mentioned in the Common Minimum Program…” The article underscores that the very purpose of the alliance is to cater to the governance agenda. “Its primary aim is the ‘creation of an enabling environment for the all-round economic development of the state and its people.’”
Compiled by Liz Mathew
