Kejriwal wants Delhi ordinance issue to be 'first on the agenda' at Patna Opposition meet

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal has shot off letters to top Opposition leaders asking them to take up the Delhi ordinance issue first on the agenda at the joint meeting in Patna this Friday, an action which was seen as “unnecessary” and “act of self-importance” by some in the grouping.

Kejriwal, who has met at least ten Opposition leaders in the past month seeking support against the contentious ordinance giving control of the Delhi bureaucracy to the union government, said that every party should make its stand clear and discuss the way forward to defeat the ordinance in Parliament.

In the letters, Kejriwal urged the parties to list the “unconstitutional 'anti-Delhi' ordinance” as the “first issue to be discussed” during the first Opposition meeting to strategise on the joint fight against the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections next year.

Also Read | Nitish Kumar monitors preparations for mega Opposition meet

However, sources said, some of the Opposition leaders were not enthused by Kejriwal setting a demand ahead of the meeting, especially when issues related to federalism are bound to come up anyway during the discussions.

A senior Opposition leader called the letters "unnecessary" while another said it was an "act of self-importance". A third leader said Kejriwal is rushing through the agenda when a vote in Parliament is at least a month away.

Kejriwal on Monday said other parties should ask the Congress to make clear its stand on the issue, as its president Mallikarjun Kharge and top leader Rahul Gandhi have not given time for a meeting or announced support, following pushback from their Delhi and Punjab units.

In the letters, Kejriwal asked leaders to view the ordinance in a holistic manner and not think about it as a “Delhi-centric” problem, while warning that if a bill to replace the ordinance is passed in Parliament, it would be brought in other non-BJP states as well.

"One by one, democracy will be eradicated in other states as well, and the Prime Minister will control all state governments through the office of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor," he said.

Kejriwal added that it would be "wrong to assume" that such an order can only be imposed in the context of Delhi because Delhi is a half-state. "Through a similar order, the central government can strip away all the rights of any full-fledged state mentioned in the concurrent list. For example, the central government can completely take away the authority of states over subjects like electricity, education, trade, and other issues through such an order," he wrote in the letter.

"The central government has already experimented with such an order in Delhi. If the central government succeeds in this experiment, it will then issue similar orders for each non-BJP-ruled state one by one, thereby taking away the rights of states over subjects mentioned in the concurrent list. Hence, it becomes extremely crucial for all parties and individuals to come together and ensure that this order is not passed in Parliament under any circumstances,” he added.