Swaraj Abhiyan gets ready for civic polls

Starts process to select 'peoples candidates'

On completion of a year on Thursday, Swaraj Abhiyan, the group formed by expelled AAP leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan, has initiated a process to select “people’s candidates” who will contest civic bypolls scheduled for May 15.

The Swaraj Abhiyan will organise elections to select candidates for the municipal by-elections.
“We want to bring in the new model of people’s participation in the run-up to these bypolls by introducing a ‘candidate selection process’.

“We will hold elections in some wards to find the right candidate. These candidates will be known as lok-umeedwar (people’s candidate) who will contest the upcoming civic bypolls,” said Anupam, national working committee member of Swaraj Abhiyan.

“One of the root causes of corrupt practices and sycophancy in political arena is that the candidate selection process suffers from high command supremo culture and is completely undemocratic and opaque,” he said.

Swaraj Abhiyan will lend its “full support” to such candidates who will contest the by-election as independents, he told Deccan Herald.

According to Swaraj Abhiyan, the model is catching up in two of the 13 wards going to the polls on May 15. “Locals have already started distributing pamphlets about the election of the candidates in Ward No.67 Wazirpur (under the North Delhi Municipal Corporation) and Ward No.124 Vikas Nagar (under the South Delhi Municipal Corporation),” said Anupam.

Swaraj Abhiyan said its main aim is to give people the “right” candidates. “We want the focus to remain on the process of the selection of candidates. People have a right to choose their own candidates to represent them in the MCD. Those involved in corruption or any other vice will be rejected right away,” said Anupam.

Swaraj Abhiyan’s arch-rival Aam Aadmi Party is also in the fray. “The Aam Aadmi Party has become like any other party in the country. It has passed many political parties when it comes to corruption or spending public money on self-publicity,” said Anupam.

Of these 13 wards, seven are under South Delhi Municipal Corporation, two in East Delhi Municipal Corporation and four in North Delhi Municipal Corporation.

After December 2013 Delhi Assembly elections, nine councillors had resigned from their posts after being elected as MLAs in the Vidhan Sabha. Following the February 2015 Assembly elections, four more resigned after being elected as legislators for Vidhan Sabha. Since 2013, no by-elections have taken place to fill the vacancies in these 13 wards.