100 days of AAP: Kejriwal may demand full statehood at public meet

As the Aam Aadmi Party finishes its first 100 days in power, the Arvind Kejriwal-led government is planning to push for full statehood for Delhi -- a key move in its turf war with the lieutenant governor and against what the party calls “bulldozing” by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Central government.

The announcement is likely to be made at a public meeting, which will be held at the central park in Connaught Place where Kejriwal and his ministers will highlight achievements of the 100-day old AAP government.

Kejriwal is expected to make the announcement at the party’s Jan Sabha, ahead of the two-day emergency assembly session that begins on May 26.

An official said that the chief minister has already asked for a special assembly session on Tuesday to discuss the matter of full statehood and will make his first public pitch for it, post the recent developments, on Monday. “Due to the Centre’s interference in state matters it is imperative for the elected government in Delhi to have complete constitutional control over the city,” added the official.

As the war with the LG raged on, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia accused the Narendra Modi government of taking the biggest U-turn on BJP’s poll promise of granting full statehood to Delhi.

“Modi government’s minister Harsh Vardhan has been saying it repeatedly... Modiji himself said and they put it in their manifesto to give Delhi full statehood. Now when the issue has come up, forget about talking about it, they are showing dadagiri. The Delhi government will not keep quiet on the issue,” he said.