AAP MLA Binny again lashes out at Kejriwal

NEW DELHI: For the second time in a month, the Aam Aadmi Party faced rebellion from its Laxmi Nagar MLA, Vinod Kumar Binny, who on Wednesday threatened to "expose" chief minister Arvind Kejriwal after being reportedly denied a Lok Sabha ticket. Binny, who defeated Congress bigwig A K Walia in the elections, had earlier threatened an agitation when he was not made a minister. The former Congress worker has now accused AAP of not delivering on its promises. In a move that could lead to his expulsion from the party, Binny said he would hold a press conference on Thursday to expose Kejriwal. Kejriwal retaliated saying Binny was unhappy on being denied a Lok Sabha ticket and that the party would respond to all of Binny's charges after his press conference. The war of words escalated when Binny called Kejriwal ‘sabsa bada jhoota' (the biggest liar).He also indicated that he had no desire to quit the party and if action was not taken on his complaints, he would go on a hunger strike. "I have never denied that I applied for the Lok Sabha seat from east Delhi. I did it on the recommendation of senior party member Sanjay Singh and in consultation with Kejriwal. My concerns are issue based. I have chosen to address them publically in line with the party's philosophy of having the people involved in issues," he told TOI.Kejriwal, in turn, said, "He initially asked for a cabinet berth and was denied it. Then he asked to contest the Lok Sabha elections but has been denied a ticket since no sitting MLA from AAP will contest the national elections. He must be upset because of that. We will wait for his press conference to see what he has to say."Party sources indicated that they would no longer indulge Binny's frequent tantrums and once his grouse is made public, the party would deliberate on action against him. "We dealt with his ego once but this is getting too much. The party is not a means for people to fulfill their political ambitions. There was a meeting of all MLAs and other candidates who contested the Delhi assembly elections on Tuesday. Binny said nothing to anyone there. At night it was decided that no sitting MLA would be allowed to contest the Lok Sabha elections. He is obviously miffed at that. Binny has also indicated that he has been in touch with senior BJP members," said sources.AAP has 28 seats in a 70-seat assembly and enjoys outside support of eight Congress MLAs, one independent and a JD(U) MLA, taking its total tally to 38. This is two more than the minimum required by a party for government formation. Sources said that if Binny was to be expelled, the party would still have a the required numbers.Binny, a two-time councillor, was presumed to be a frontrunner for a cabinet berth due to his political experience. But when the announcement was made on December 24 last year, his absence raised several questions. Binny had then threatened to air his grievances in a press conference. Although the party denied anything was amiss, it took two senior members several hours to convince Binny to come around.