Kumar Vishwas hits out at Kejriwal for 'betraying' on Rajya Sabha

New Delhi, January 3: In a development that is tipped to stoke unease in the Aam Aadmi Party, two relatively unknown persons Sushil Gupta and ND Gupta were chosen along with party leader Sanjay Singh to be nominated for Rajya Sabha berth. The two, who are incidentally not even members of the AAP, were chosen today in its top political meet.

“Today I feel slighted. I am rewarded in the form of punishment for all my opinions in the party, be it on the issue of JNU or army personnel or selection of candidate in Punjab polls (early this year),” Vishwas said speaking to the press at his residence.

“I congratulate Arvind ji for this amazing decision great people have been chosen,” he said.

AAP’s highest decision making body, the Political Affairs Committee (PAC), met on Wednesday formally approved the decision to nominate the three names which were decided at Kejriwal’s official residence in a meeting attended by 56 MLAs. Kumar Vishwas, who is a member of PAC, was absent in the deliberations.

While Singh has been associated with Arvind Kejriwal since his Anna Hazare protest days, later occupying a key role in AAP after its inception in November 2012, Sushil Gupta is a Delhi-based businessman and ND Gupta a chartered accountant.

Even former AAP members reacted to the developments.

“I used to say, whatever his other faults Arvind Kejriwal cannot be bought. Defended him against Kapil Mishra’s allegations. Now I don’t know what to say. Speechless, ashamed and numb,” tweeted Yogendra Yadav who had an acrimonious exit from the party soon after it had won Delhi polls in February 2015.

Notably, given Aam Aadmi Party’s brute majority in Delhi assembly, all three of its nominees will have an easy sailing unless the MLAs cross vote. Elections to three Rajya Sabha seats from Delhi would be held on January 16. The last date to file nominations for the three Rajya Sabha seats is January 5.