At the mega opposition unity meeting in Patna on Friday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal claimed that the Congress is the not supporting the ordinance brought by the Centre for control of services, even as Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge made it clear that the meeting was called to discuss national issues with focus on next year's general election.
Sources told IANS that Kejriwal raised the issue of Congress not making its stand clear on the Centre's ordinance over control of services.A source said that after listening to Kejriwal's argument, Kharge said that when the ordinance issue will come up for discussion in the Rajya Sabha, it will be discussed by the opposition parties just like every Bill is discussed.
The source said that Kharge also told Kejriwal, "Today the issue is not about states, but about national politics and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. So we will focus on that."Kharge said that when the time comes, Congress will clear its stand on the ordinance, the source said.
"Give and take will be there, some old wounds will be there but we will have to wait and see if ointment will be applied or it will be left open," the source said.Sources also revealed that National Conference leader Omar Abdullah reminded Kejriwal how it supported the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.
After the meeting in Patna, which was attended by 15 opposition parties, the AAP issued a statement saying that Congress' hesitation and refusal to act as a team player on an important issue will make it very difficult for AAP to be a part of any alliance that includes the grand-old party.
The AAP also said that until the Congress publicly denounces the 'black' ordinance and declares that all 31 of its Rajya Sabha MPs will oppose it, it will be difficult for AAP to participate in future meetings of like-minded parties where the Congress is a participant.
It added that the ordinance not only aims to snatch the democratic rights of an elected government in Delhi, but also poses a significant threat to India's democracy and Constitutional principles.