Kanwar Sandhu (left) with Sukhpal Singh Khaira in Chandigarh. Express
The infighting in AAP is set to spill out in the Vidhan Sabha session beginning Friday, with the new Leader of Opposition Harpal Cheema pushing the seats of rebel MLAs Sukhpal Khaira and Kanwar Sandhu from the first row to the last row. As Leader of Opposition, Khaira used to sit on the seat opposite the Chief Minister and alongside the Deputy Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha. However, now that Cheema has been appointed the LoP, Khaira had to be given an alternate seat. It is now learnt that in a communication to the Vidhan Sabha secretariat, the new LoP has asked for Khaira to be seated in the last row of the AAP group of MLAs along with Sandhu.
Kharar MLA Kanwar Sandhu also used to sit on a seat in the front row in the House along with other senior leaders like Dakha MLA HS Phoolka, Sunam MLA Aman Arora and Deputy Leader of Opposition and Jagraon MLA Sarabjit Kaur Manuke. Now, he too will have to sit in the back row with other junior AAP MLAs.
Incidentally, Khaira is the only MLA among the 20 legislators of AAP who has ever been elected as an MLA on an earlier occasion. This is his second stint as an MLA, the earlier one being on a Congress ticket between 2007 to 2012.
Reacting to the development, Khaira said he was very saddened to learn that “cronies of Delhi have pushed their seats to the back row in the Vidhan Sabha”. He said, “ This is the cheapest level of politics. I will call it ‘kmeengi’ (meanness). They can gag our voice in the House, but they cannot stop us from reaching out to the people. They are they playing into the hands of Congress and Akalis in this chicken-hearted politics.”
Speaking to The Indian Express, Harpal Cheema said he had reworked and sent a new seating plan for the MLAs but he did not remember where Khaira and Sandhu had been seated. Asked about Khaira’s comments on fake calls for unity, Cheema said this was what the dissident MLAs had been doing. “We have been talking about unity for a month now but they have been abusing us,” Cheema said.
Kanwar Sandhu termed the change of seating arrangement as “rubbing salt on wounds”. He said that as a two-time MLA, Khaira was senior to all AAP MLAs and deserved a front row seat. “In terms of age and professional experience, I am senior to all of them. This is just an attempt to not allow us to speak in the assembly,” he said.
Sukhpal Khaira and Kanwar Sandhu are seen as leaders of the dissident group of MLAs. Addressing a press conference a few days back, Sangrur MP and Delhi loyalist Bhagwant Mann had said Khaira and Sandhu had led the other MLAs with them astray and had warned other MLAs to beware of them. He had also said the party would very soon take action against the two.
Meanwhile, it is also learnt that the eight dissident MLAs will not be attending the party meeting called by LoP Harpal Cheema Friday to discuss the monsoon session. They rebel MLAs have decided to hold their own meeting to discuss the next course of action.