Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan's party will not contest next year's Punjab elections. But they will take part in Delhi civic polls.
Expelled AAP leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan on Sunday launched a new political outfit called Swaraj India and announced it will contest next year's Delhi civic polls but not the Punjab Assembly elections.
Accusing Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of betraying the hopes of "aam aadmi", Yadav, who will be heading the new party said, the new organisation would act as a force of "alternate politics" and not resort to "cult politics". "Now that we are a political party, it is not that we will contest every election. Politics in Punjab is very fluid and the need of the hour is to defeat the Badal government, which is the most hated dispensation in the country.
"We will support (suspended AAP MP) Dharamvira Gandhi, who has already announced a front. We will be contesting the MCD polls, but a formal decision on this is yet to be taken," said Yadav, who was elected as the President of the party. Yadav said the new political party will voluntarily bring itself under the ambit of RTI and not bind its lawmakers with party whip unless in case of a no-confidence motion.
"The new party will not encourage personality cult. To ensure federal structure in the party, state units would be allowed to take decisions on contesting local polls.
"Unlike other parties there will be freedom of expression. So, even if any member has a view contrary to the party s view, no action will be taken against him. We will have an innovative and transparent candidate selection process," Yadav said.
Taking a jibe at the Kejriwal government for its slogans against the Centre, Yadav said "Hum kaam karte rahe, who chugli karte rahe" (We kept on working and they kept on backbiting). In April last year, Bhushan and Yadav were sacked by AAP for "anti-party activities" after they questioned Kejriwal's style of functioning and "lack of transparency" and "personality cult" in the party. While Yadav would be heading the new political party, Bhushan will be the convenor of Swaraj Abhiyan, an organisation formed by the duo after their expulsion from AAP.
Bhushan said Swaraj Abhiyan (SA) will exist as a separate entity and give an alternate platform to people who do not wish to participate in electoral politics. SA has been raising issues ranging from agrarian crisis to corruption. "In the coming months, we will try to ensure that officer bearers of Swaraj Abhiyan and Swaraj India are not the same," Bhushan said.
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