A day after the Election Commission turned heat on 20 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MlAs by recommending their disqualification to Ram Nath Kovind for allegedly holding the “office of profit”, the party MlAs have sought time from the President of India knocking at his door for justice.
Infuriated at the Eelection Commission (EC) and the BJP-led Central Government, Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia lambasted the constitutional body for not even following the “law of natural justice” in the case.
He said the EC’s opinion of disqualifying MlAs is ‘biased’, ‘unconstitutional’ and ‘undemocratic’. The victimised MlAs would meet the President and will request him to send the recommendation back to the EC and asking it to give MlAs due opportunity to be heard so that they may present their point of views and ‘facts’ in the case, he said.
“I can bet not a single penny has been taken by any of these MlA. They have not even taken a single vehicle or bungalow or any office.
“They have been assigned with the responsibility and were helping the Government to look after its various schemes like Mohalla Clinic, skill centres, tourism, development work in unauthorised colonies etc,” said Sisodia.
Also, he claimed that these MlAs were rather spending money out of their own pockets to visit and look after the developmental works and schemes of the Delhi Government in constituencies.
He said these MlAs were not even drawing salaries while the MlAs in other States acting as Parliamentary Secretaries are drawing their salaries in lakhs.
The AAP leader slammed the BJP and the Central Government allegedly for creating hurdles in the way of the AAP, said Sisodia, adding that the crackdown is just out of the fact that the Delhi Government is working for the development of Delhi with all honesty.
“Such crackdown is not for us. Earlier they were pulled up by the court for lodging false FIRs against our MlAs, they made CBI to raid CM’s office, tried to buy our MlA, scrutinise 400 files of the Delhi Government. But they have failed every time,” alleged Sisodia.
He also alleged that at time when the Delhi Government was about to come up with its developmental work and ambitious policies in its fourth year, which mainly includes doorstep delivery of Government services for common people, CCTVs in hospitals and schools etc, the BJP is trying to stop AAP so that the Delhi Government may not work for the rest of its remaining term.
While at the party office, AAP leader Gopal Rai said the appointment of Parliamentary Secretaries had come up in 11 States, but only the AAP is being targeted.
The case of disqualification of AAP MlAs is up for hearing at the Delhi High Court on Monday.
The Commission said the party MlAs, by occupying the post of Parliamentary Secretaries between March 13, 2015 and September 8, 2016, held offices of profit, and were liable to be disqualified as legislators.