Statehood Issue : AAP Meeting Today

New Delhi (PTI): Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has called a meeting with ward-level AAP officer bearers and MLAs at this residence on Sunday to discuss strategy on the issue of full statehood to Delhi which it plans to raise strongly in the run up to Lok Sabha elections next year, party sources said.

The AAP government has called a special session of the Delhi Assembly to press its demand for full statehood to Delhi.

Earlier this week, Deputy Chief Minister tabled a government resolution in this regard. Kejriwal is likely to speak on the issue in Delhi Assembly on Monday.

Sources said that the party will also hold a workers’ convention in July on the issue of full statehood to Delhi.

An AAP functionary said discussions will be held at the meeting on a strategy to effective raise the issue of full statehood to the national capital.

As Lok Sabha elections are scheduled to be held next year, the chief minister, who is also the AAP’s national convener, will also discuss poll strategy, another party leader said.

Earlier in the day, senior AAP leader Gopal Rai said that the Aam Aadmi Party will “expose the political opportunism” of both the BJP and Congress on the issue of full statehood for Delhi.

He said the ongoing Delhi Assembly session has “exposed the sudden U-turn” on statehood by the BJP and the Congress. “BJP has made every attempt during the ongoing Assembly session to avoid discussion on the statehood issue,” he told reporters here.

“It is beyond any reasonable understanding as to how the decades-old promise by BJP stalwarts -- former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and former deputy PM LK Advani -- has been suddenly junked by today's BJP,” Rai said in a statement.

The AAP is planning to strongly raise the statehood issue during Lok Sabha elections, party sources said.