Kamal Ghorui
Raghav Chadha and Saurabh Bharadwaj (R) (File ph
NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party’s internal rift spilled into full public view on Friday after MP Raghav Chadha reacted to his removal as the party’s deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha, drawing sharp counterattacks from senior colleagues.Leaders including Delhi AAP chief Saurabh Bharadwaj and IT cell head Anurag Dhanda, calling themselves “Arvind Kejriwal ke sipaahi,” defended the leadership’s decision and justified Chadha’s ‘demotion’ in the Upper House.
Also read – AAP rift out in open: Raghav Chadha attacks leadership; party hits backBharadwaj launched a pointed attack, accusing Chadha of indulging in “soft PR” rather than taking on the PM Narendra Modi-led government. Taking a swipe at one of Chadha’s parliamentary interventions, he said, “A small party gets very limited time there, and instead of talking about samosas, it is more important to raise the country’s real issues.”He added, “Whenever there is an issue and the opposition walks out, you do not join the walkout. For the past several years, I have not seen you raise any issue in Parliament where you questioned the Prime Minister or the BJP government. How can politics of fear work like this?”Questioning Chadha’s role as a Rajya Sabha member from Punjab, Bharadwaj said, “You are elected from Punjab, and you hesitate to raise even Punjab’s issues. Recently in Gujarat, around 160 party workers were booked in false cases and many were arrested, yet you remained silent on that as well.”Escalating the criticism further, he invoked a past episode involving party leadership. “When many of our leaders were in jail and Arvind Kejriwal ji, as chief minister, was arrested in a false case, you were not even in the country at that time, you had gone somewhere and stayed away.”The party’s IT cell chief Anurag Dhanda also mounted a sharp attack, accusing Raghav Chadha of failing to discharge his responsibilities in the party’s interest. Taking aim at the nature of issues raised by Chadha in Parliament, he said, “In Parliament, the party gets just a little time to speak—in that, we can either struggle to save the country or haggle to make the samosas cheaper in the airport canteen.”Dhanda escalated his criticism by questioning Chadha’s political stance and resolve. “If someone fears Modi, will they fight for the country?” he said, alleging that Chadha had avoided taking strong positions on key national issues. He pointed to several instances to support his charge, including alleged silence over the arrest of party workers in Gujarat, inaction on voting rights concerns in West Bengal, and refusal to back a motion against the Chief Election Commissioner.He further accused Chadha of staying back in the House during party walkouts, adding, “For the past few years, you’ve grown afraid, Raghav. You hesitate to speak against Modi. You hesitate to speak on the country’s real issues,” before ending with a pointed remark: “He who is afraid…”
