AAP's Kumar Vishwas sulks after being denied RS nomination
What's the story
In an expected move, AAP's Kumar Vishwas lashed out at Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal after being denied Rajya Sabha nomination. Vishwas is known to be at loggerheads with the party on many issues. He lamented that he was "being punished for speaking the truth." Earlier, AAP announced that senior leader Sanjay Singh and lesser-known leaders ND Gupta and Sushil Gupta will be its nominees.
Nominations
What were the issues surrounding the nomination?
AAP's RS nominations have witnessed drama since the beginning. Kejriwal expressed his wish to field "rank outsiders." AAP also approached former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and media personality Arun Shourie with this intention. However, the top leadership remained divided about fielding outsiders and sidelining own leaders. Vishwas had made his ambitions for an RS membership clear. Thus, the party's snub obviously hurt him.
Kumar Vishwas
What does Kumar Vishwas have to say?
Slamming Kejriwal, Vishwas, in his poetic-style, said "Kejriwal had said that he will kill me, but will not let me be a martyr. My request now is to let the dead body be, it's a rule of war." He said he accepted "martyrdom." He claimed that nothing in AAP happens without Kejriwal's consent. As he disagrees with Kejriwal, it's difficult to survive in AAP.
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Though he congratulated nominated members, Vishwas was bitter about it
Vishwas extended his greetings to RS nominees. However, he bitterly remarked "Whatever be the name of those Guptas nominated, congratulations to Kejriwal and them for the loyal work to AAP! They will now sit where Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Indira Gandhi and other stalwarts once sat."
Vishwas v/s Kejriwal
Incidentally, Vishwas and Kejriwal don't see eye-to-eye on many issues
The rift between Vishwas and Kejriwal has been deepening for some time now. At AAP's fifth anniversary, Vishwas declared that AAP needed "course correction" as it had moved away from its core principles. He had mocked Kejriwal for questioning India's surgical strikes against Pakistan. Vishwas claims to have support of some MLAs. How will this situation play out for AAP? We'll wait and watch.