‘Sandhu wanted to be leader of opposition

AAP MLA from Barnala Meet Hayer has claimed that Kharar MLA an former journalist Kanwar Sandhu had said in a meeting that he would convince Sukhpal Singh Khaira against rebelling if he himself was made the leader of opposition in the state assembly.

Sandhu rubbished the charge. Hayer, speaking at a press conference in which Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann took on the party’s rebelling leaders, said Sandhu made the statement at a meeting of the party’s 13 MLAs with Punjab affairs in-charge Manish Sisodia in Delhi. Mann said it was he who first approached Sandhu, a journalist, in 2014 to join AAP, but he rejected the offer for contesting on a Lok Sabha ticket, saying AAP was a new party.

Mann said though Sandhu made claims of wrongdoing in distribution of AAP tickets for assembly polls, Sandhu insisted on contesting only from Kharar. “The party asked him to go to Garhshankar, an area with many NRI families. In Kharar, a local leader, Narinder Singh Shergill, had already been working,” he said. Mann asked Sandhu if he had also paid for the tickets. “He got the ticket of his choice. Isn’t that autonomy?” he said.

When contacted, Sandhu said since he lived in Kharar, he obviously wanted to contest from there. “I too was heading the manifesto committee and as much a volunteer of the party,” he said.

‘Baseless claims’

Reacting to claims by AAP Punjab president Bhagwant Mann and Barnala MLA Meet Hayer, Kharar MLA Kanwar Sandhu said the charge that he wanted the leader of opposition post for himself was totally baseless. “I wonder if Meet can swear on this. Sisodia was present in the meeting and he is being misquoted. I don’t think he would second what Meet has alleged. I never wanted the position for myself,” he said.

After Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann dared rebel AAP MLAs to resign and face elections after forming a new party, Sukhpal Khaira said they would not resign.

Addressing mediapersons AAP rebel leader Khaira said national convener Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab political affairs incharge Manish Sisodia were their leaders and it was up to them take action.On Mann’s allegations that Khaira and Kharar MLA Kanwar Sandhu were “opportunists” and Sandhu sought the Leader of Opposition post, Khaira said the charges were baseless as no one-to-one meeting took place between Sandhu and national leaders. He said Mann should explain his political opportunism as AAP was his third party and he had been trying hard to join either Congress or other parties.

Meanwhile, Mann is in a controversy over an alleged phone conversation recorded before the Assembly elections last year. He is allegedly telling AAP volunteers to protest against HS Phoolka, who had got a ticket for his supporter. Mann said the volunteers had planned to disrupt Kejriwal’s rally and he was just trying to pacify them by saying they should instead go to Phoolka’s constituency.