Arvind Kejriwal gets support of MK Stalin, says PM Modi government is not returning at the Centre

Related: Delhi ordinance a threat to democracy, says KCR

‘Bill should be defeated in Rajya Sabha’

Kejriwal met Stalin and other DMK leaders including DMK Parliamentary Floor leader TR Balu and Kanimozhi as part of his outreach against the ordinance on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, the Delhi Chief Minister said that if an elected government — like the one in Delhi — did not have any control over its bureaucrats over their services, then it would not be possible for that government to function.

He noted that that’s what the Supreme Court had said in response to a challenge to that ordinance.

“At 10 o’clock in the night, the BJP government at the Centre passed an ordinance nullifying the Supreme Court order. This has perhaps happened for the first time in the history of India,” said Kejriwal.

“The BJP completely nullified the Supreme Court order and reversed it, and took away all the powers of the elected government to run. So now, the elected government has no control over the bureaucracy and their services,” he explained.

“This is unconstitutional, this is undemocratic. We live in a democracy. We have a Constitution, and the Constitution says that there will be elections. The people will elect their government and the government should have all the powers to run,” Kejriwal said.

Stalin assured the AAP leaders that the DMK would back the Delhi government and will oppose the Bill in both Houses of Parliament. (Supplied)

Stating that though the BJP had the majority in the Lok Sabha but only 93 members out of 238 in the Rajya Sabha, Kejriwal said that if all the non-BJP parties came together, they could defeat in Parliament the bill that was expected to replace the ordinance.

Kejriwal further said, “So, with every passing day, I am feeling more and more confident that we should be able to defeat [the bill].”

He added, referring to the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections: “As I have already said, this will be almost like a semifinal for 2024.”

The AAP leader continued: “If this Bill is defeated in Rajya Sabha, a very strong message will go all across the country that the entire Opposition has come together and maybe in 2024, the Modi government is not going to come back.”

Asked about seeking the Congress’ support, Kejriwal said he was very confident that the Congress would support this.

“There is no reason why the Congress will not support it, because this is undemocratic. It is a federal structure,” he said.

Also read: MK Stalin-Arvind Kejriwal bonhomie: Politics or governance?

‘Punjab also suffers due to the Governor’

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann told reporters on Thursday that it is not about only Delhi’s democracy or the ordinance. It was to save democracy in the entire country, he said.

Taking on the BJP, the AAP leader said that the BJP was running the non-BJP governments in the states through ordinances or through the Governor.

“Chief Minister MK Stalin, too, has to fight with the Governor. The Governor is not signing the Bills, nor reading the speeches passed by the Council of Ministers. And that is the scenario in Punjab as well. I have to move the Supreme Court to call Punjab Assembly Budget Session. This is not fair for democracy or the federal structure,” Mann said.

Hon'ble Delhi CM Thiru @ArvindKejriwal and Hon'ble Punjab CM Thiru @BhagwantMann met me at my residence to seek DMK's support against the GNCTD ordinance.

DMK has always been opposing any move that undermines federalism and erodes states' autonomy. DMK will never remain a mute… pic.twitter.com/Lti7WGLY0Q

— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) June 1, 2023

Earlier, Stalin welcomed the two chief ministers and extended his support to their cause.

He also assured the, that the DMK would back the Delhi government and oppose the Bill in both Houses of Parliament.

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