Congress leaders oppose backing AAP in Delhi ordinance row: Report
What's the story
Congress leaders from Punjab and Delhi have warned the party against backing the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in its fight against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over an ordinance that gives the Centre control over bureaucrats posted in the national capital. According to ANI, the leaders met Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi to express their concerns about it.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has been gathering support from numerous opposition parties against the Centre's ordinance. The ordinance allegedly invalidates the May 11 Supreme Court order that transferred the control of services in Delhi to the AAP's Delhi government, excluding police, public order, and land. The BJP at the Centre allegedly seeks to put bureaucrats above the Delhi CM.
Details
Kejriwal rallies support from opposition parties
Over the past few days, Kejriwal met Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Shiv Sena (UBT) supremo Uddhav Thackeray, and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) head Sharad Pawar. While all of them have assured their support, the Congress has yet to make its stand on the issue public. It has reportedly left the final decision to the high command for now.
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Congress's stance on backing AAP against Delhi ordinance
It is also worth noting that the Congress has been divided over supporting the AAP against the Centre's ordinance. Earlier, former Congress General Secretary Ajay Maken reportedly made a resolute decision not to support the AAP. In a Twitter post, he claimed that supporting the AAP might be equivalent to opposing Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and Baba Saheb Ambedkar.
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Details on Delhi ordinance row
On May 11, the SC ruled in favor of the Kejriwal government in the case of who controls Delhi's bureaucracy. However, the central government issued an ordinance on May 19 and named the lieutenant governor as the final arbiter on the subject. The ordinance seeks to amend the Government of National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi Act, 1991, and effectively negates the SC judgment.