AAP to ask I.N.D.I.A. to oust Cong unless Maken faces action for calling Kejriwal 'anti-national'

New Delhi: Trouble in I.N.D.I.A bloc ballooned to another crisis on Thursday with an angry AAP saying they will ask other parties to “drop” Congress from the alliance, if it does not take action against senior leader Ajay Maken for calling Arvind Kejriwal an “anti-national” and clear whether it is in collusion with the BJP for Delhi elections.

AAP also alleged that Congress’ candidates, including Sandeep Dikshit who is fighting Kejriwal and Farhad Suri contesting against Manish Sisodia, are funded by the BJP while asking why Maken and other Delhi Congress leaders do not call any BJP leader a “anti-national” or file FIRs against them as Youth Congress did against Kejriwal and Chief Minister Atishi.

The outburst by AAP came on a day Congress is holding a meeting of its Working Committee in Karnataka’s Belagavi to chalk out a roadmap for 2025 while commemorating the centenary of Mahatma Gandhi’s Congress presidentship during 1924 Belgaum Session. It also comes close on the heels of Trinamool Congress seeking leadership change in the I.N.D.I.A bloc.

AAP fielded top leaders Sanjay Singh and Atishi to express its anger over Maken’s remarks, while reminding the Congress that Kejriwal campaigned for Congress candidates in Delhi and Chandigarh during Lok Sabha polls. AAP leaders did not “utter a word” against them during recent Haryana elections despite both fighting against each other, he said.

“The Congress in Delhi is in support of the BJP. Whatever they are doing is benefitting the BJP. Maken is following the BJP script and targeting AAP. Yesterday, he crossed all limits by calling Kejriwal an anti-national…Till this day, Maken has not called any BJP leader anti-national or filed a case against them,” Singh told a press conference.

“In 24 hours, the Congress will have to take action against Maken and tell us where they stand. If not, we will ask I.N.D.I.A partners to drop Congress from the alliance…The Congress national leadership will have to say whether it is also part of its Delhi unit’s collusion with the BJP,” he said.

He said the Congress was fielding candidates according to the wishes of the BJP while questioning the rationale behind fielding Dikshit against Kejriwal while Atishi alleged that crores of rupees have been given for the election campaigning of Dikshit and Suri. AAP sources said the leadership is also upset with the Youth Congress filing an FIR against Kejriwal and Atishi.

“If Congress had so much problem with AAP, why did they fight the Lok Sabha elections in alliance? It is clear now that the Delhi Congress is in collusion with the BJP…Delhi Congress unit is working towards ensuring BJP’s victory,” he said.

While calling Kejriwal an “anti-national”, Maken said Congress’ support to AAP’s 40-day government in 2013 was the main reason for the “weakening” of the party in the capital as well as Delhi’s problems.

The AAP's move comes close on the heels of Trinamool Congress upping the ante against the Congress over leadership issue after its losses in Haryana and Maharashtra elections. Trinamool leaders had pitched Mamata Banerjee as the leader of the bloc replacing Congress leadership.

Several parties had supported the suggestion. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on December 16 also attended an AAP programme in Delhi.

However, the trigger for AAP, which has been sympathetic to Congress' national leadership so far, was Maken's statement during the press conference on Wednesday.