While AAP leader Ashutosh defended the sacked minister Sandeep Kumar giving examples of Mahatma Gandhi, former Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Atal Bihari Vajapayee, the Delhi BJP termed AAP as a “porn party” alleging some of its leaders run porn sites, some earn as porn stars and the rest write articlesdefending them.
Ashutosh said in an article that a public figure do not have many discretions that an ordinary man enjoys. “I agree that Sandeep Kumar is a public figure, and to be in the public glare one, has to pay a certain price. "A public figure can’t enjoy many discretions that an ordinary citizen can. A public figure probably cannot openly smoke, drink and flirt with the opposite sex, but he or she is entitled to his or her private space and he or she should not be chased there,” Ashutosh wrote.
Ashutosh questioned why a consensual sexual act should make headlines. He added that Gandhi, Nehru and Vajpayee have lived their lives following their desires beyond the social boundaries.
Delhi BJP President Satish Upadhyay said that Chief Minister Arvind should either support this article or expel AAP leader Ashutosh from the party.
National Secretary R P Singh tweeted, "Sandeep Kmr friend of @Arvind Kejriwal a Poor man visited US thrice in 3mnths & his wife is delivering a child in US."
On Thursday, Kumar had claimed that he was being framed because he was a Dalit. The Delhi BJP unit said that the Aam Aadmi Party has degraded the politics arena in the national capital.
"After seeing the pornographic acts of former minister Sandeep Kumar and the article of AAP leader Ashutosh in defence and the case of Somnath Bharti accused of helping in running porn sites, we can say that this is not Aam Aadmi Party," said the BJP in a statement.
Upadhyay said that the article written by Ashutosh "has not only destroyed the fabric of the Indian culture but also Indian politics". "The way in which the closest friend of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has tried to defend a dismissed minister Sandeep Kumar, BJP is of the view that the character of Aam Aadmi Party including Ashutosh is under question," he said.
"The way AAP leader has tried character assassination of Mahatma Gandhi every Indian feel sad. It is regrettable that many times Arvind Kejriwal and Ashutosh himself have gone to pray at the Samadhi of the Father of Nation but were not ashamed of insulting Mahatma Gandhi for their shameless colleague," he said.
"The shameful way in which Ashutosh has spoken on the video, it seems that he has tried to portray that the woman in the video was not of good character. The way in which he has raised questions in his article that why should anyone talk about the sex video, why should it be put in the public domain? It seems that he wants to say such incidents are happening everywhere in the country or at least it is common in the Aam AadmiParty family."
Pradesh Vice President Shikha Rai said that after the Kejriwal government has come to power, "it is clear that there is no respect or place for women in this party".
"An AAP woman party worker was asked to compromise with the party leaders. The Aam Aadmi Party sees women only as a commodity of enjoyment."
"We fail to understand the silence of DCW Chairperson Swati Maliwal on the article written by Ashutosh," said Rai.
"The women of Delhi hope that Maliwal will serve notice to Ashutosh on this uncivilised article but her silence shows that the Aam Aadmi Party, family from which she has come, take these cases the same way as Ashutosh has tried to show."
Published 03 September 2016, 09:39 IST