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AAP crisis: Hooting, shouting as Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan booted out

The long dusty highway of north west Delhi's Kapashera, where the capital meets Gurgaon, turned into a circus on Saturday morning.

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Yogendra Yadav after he was expelled from the AAP national executive at Kapashera
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The long dusty highway of north west Delhi's Kapashera, where the capital meets Gurgaon, turned into a circus on Saturday morning. The Aam Aadmi Party's long awaited National Council meet was held in the sprawling Callista Resorts, owned by AAP MLA Naresh Yadav. Much drama happened as volunteers shouted angry slogans, clashed with media, fought among themselves. Yogendra Yadav sat on a 15-minute dharna. Indoors, the National Council, amidst reported shouting and hooting, voted Yadav and Prashant Bhushan off the National Executive.

Kejriwal, speaking for the first time on the infighting, the allegations, counter-allegations in the media, justified his actions using epic stories of King Solomon. The mass volunteer base had never heard Kejriwal speak before.

He, reportedly, spent most of his highly emotional 40 minute speech on how Bhushan and Yadav had attacked him and the party and explaining his words about forming a separate party with MLAs, from Thursday's sting. He told the story of the wise King Solomon, who settled a dispute between two women fighting over a baby, by suggesting the child be cut in half. The woman who gave up her right to the child was the real mother as she couldn't bear to harm it. Comparing himself to the mother, Kejriwal reportedly said that he would rather separate himself from the party than see it further broken. HE expressed his sorrow at having to fight Bhushan, "who is our own", instead of fighting corruption.

This apparently, won much support from volunteers and party workers emotionally swayed by him.

Early morning on, the NC members and invitees had company not only in the entire media presence in Delhi and beyond but also in bus loads of volunteers, supporters and cadres brought by party leaders to the venue.

In the burgeoning summer heat, rows of men, and some women, clogged the road with mostly pro Kejriwal posters. Clad in white AAP caps, they loudly chanted for the "traitors" to be kicked out of the party and had ferocious verbal spats with anyone who disagreed. A small number of supporters with calling for AAP to stay united, were overwhelmed by the louder, angrier crowd, furious at the mess the party, one they had pinned all their hopes on, was in.

When the verdict of the NC resolution, that recalled Bhushan, Yadav, Anand Kumar and Ajit Jha from the National Executive, was announced to the public by party spokesperson Sanjay Singh they happily applauded.

Meanwhile, entry into the meeting was fraught with challenges for many NC members. Apparently entry was granted after four checks -- the SMS invite, the email invite, a party identity card and one's own photo-identity proof. A few NC members found themselves missing either from the email list or from the SMS list and, hence, were not granted entry. This culminated in Yadav sitting on a 15 minute dharna outside the resort gates with four of the people who weren't allowed in. Many accused organasiers of not letting in those who could support Bhushan and Yadav.

The anger on the streets was a spillover of the rage inside. During Kejriwal's impassioned speech, many supporters hooted and cheered, disrupting proceedings. The other camp alleged that Bhushan and Yadav were not allowed to speak at all. Charges of hooliganism flew thick and fast as NC member Ramzan Choudhary came out limping, saying he was roughed up when trying to speak against Kejriwal. Party leaders were swift in countering such reports, saying they themselves ensured calm in the meeting.

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