Former AAP Minister Raaj Kumar Anand joins BJP, had earlier criticised BJP buying MLAs
New Delhi: Former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Minister Raaj Kumar Anand, along with Chhatarpur MLA Kartar Singh Tanwar, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday. Several other AAP leaders, including city councillor Umed Singh Phogat and former AAP in-charge of Himachal Pradesh Ratnesh Gupta, also joined the BJP.
Anand had earlier in August 2022 questioned when will BJPs thirst for MLAs quench. He had also questioned as to for how long will BJP keep killing democracy like this.
His earlier tweet has now gone viral with netizens making fun of the hypocrisy shown by Anand.
And he joins BJP. pic.twitter.com/Ai5XEpQbDD
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) July 11, 2024
Following these departures, AAP now holds 60 seats in the 70-member Assembly, while the BJP's strength has decreased from eight to seven after Ramvir Singh Bidhuri's election from the South Delhi Lok Sabha seat. Anand was disqualified after quitting AAP on April 10.
Anand resigned from AAP citing alleged diversion of funds meant for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes towards other purposes. He also claimed that Dalits were not given adequate representation within the party. After leaving AAP, Anand joined the Bahujan Samaj Party and contested the general election from the New Delhi seat.
Welcoming the new members, BJP Delhi unit chief Virendra Sachdeva stated, "Anand could not work for his community and people in the AAP government, which is why he decided to leave AAP and join BJP. We welcome his decision."
Anand explained his move, saying, "When I became a Minister, I felt that people were running around for their work, but the government did not care. Therefore, I resigned from my post."
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Right to vote under threat, must be made fundamental right: Cong's Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged on Thursday that the right to vote is under threat and the time has come when it should be made a fundamental right for citizens.
Speaking with reporters, Ramesh lashed out at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying the Election Commission (EC) has never been as compromised as it has been under him.
"The rot started under his predecessor. This man is a player and not a neutral observer," the Congress leader said, slamming Kumar.
Kumar is completely compromised and has become a player in elections, he alleged.
"Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds -- detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported," Ramesh said, adding that the right to vote is now under threat.
On opposition parties submitting a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha, seeking to move a motion for the CEC's removal, the Congress leader said they will continue to make efforts for Kumar's removal as he is "compromised".
Ramesh also batted for the right to vote to be recognised as a fundamental right.
"I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable," he said.
The former Union minister said this was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, but it was eventually decided that it should be made part of the Constitution.
B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned that in the future, governments might try to disenfranchise voters, he added.
"Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens," Ramesh asserted.
