Senior AAP leader Harpal Singh Cheema with other party MLAs during a press conference in Chandigarh Saturday. (Express Photo by Kamleshwar Singh)
Even as the AAP leadership opened contact with Sukhpal Khaira and Kanwar Sandhu, who are leading the group of dissident MLAs, the deadlock seemed likely to continue with the Leader of Opposition Harpal Cheema rejecting any chance of the six resolutions passed by the Bathinda volunteers’ convention being accepted.
On Friday, the legislative wing of the party had sent Sunam MLA Aman Arora to meet Khaira and Sandhu. “This was just the first meeting, I am sure things will head towards a positive resolution in days to come. I will call a meeting of the legislative wing of the party soon and I am sure Khaira and other MLAs will also come,” Cheema told mediapersons here on Saturday.
Responding to a question whether the six resolutions, which include disbanding the party structure in Punjab and rejection of his appointment as LoP, were acceptable to him, Cheema said they were not. “As of now Khaira has not left the party. I will call a official meeting. He will come and then we will decide. They do not have the right to disband any party organisation. You will see we will all come together. Aman arora has met him and we are in touch with them,” he said.
When contacted, Arora said, “The atmosphere has got vitiated due to many things being said on social media as well as from stages. There are differences between family members also but if we do not sit and talk how will they get resolved.”
“There was positive response from Khaira sahib and Sandhu sahib and I am very hopeful we will all stand united,” said Arora.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Sukhpal Khaira said there was no question of any meeting ground if the six resolutions of the Bathinda convention were not accepted. “First of all, it is not clear on whose behalf Arora had come to meet us. He told us he had come on his own but now we learn that he was sent by others. We told him we had not badmouthed anyone or spoken ill about anyone and that we stand by whatever was ratified at Bathinda convention,” he said.
Kanwar Sandhu said that the current problem in the party was not their (dissidents’) creation. “The ball is in their court. We are very clear that the matter is now in the hands of the people and we cannot back out from what was decided at Bathinda,” he said.
‘CM deliberately leaked commission report’
Meanwhile, Harpal Cheema has attacked Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh for “deliberately leaking” the Justice Ranjit Singh Commission report in order to help the Akalis prepare their defence before the forthcoming monsoon session of Vidhan Sabha.
“What are the compulsions of CM that the case is being handed over to CBI? Is he saving the then government? Is it because the BJP government is at the Centre. I demand that the CM clarify before the assembly session starts whether the leaked report is authentic or not,” Cheema said.
Kejriwal to attend MLA’s fathers Bhog
AAP national convener and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal will be in Punjab Sunday to attend the bhog ceremony of father of Mehal Kalan MLA Kulwant Singh Pandori.
The LoP, Harpal Cheema, also informed that Kejriwal would subsequently also visit the house of MLA Aman Arora in Sunam. Kejriwal is expected to interact with AAP MLAs and key office-bearers on the occasion to find out the ground position about the dissident MLAs in Punjab.