No internal democracy in AAP: Ilmi stokes smouldering fire

 "There is absence of internal democracy in AAP," Ilmi, who is now a Bharatiya Janata Party leader, said.

In what appeared to be a BJP move drive the wedge deeper within the AAP, Ilmi supported Yadav and Bhushan, whose prominence in the party may be cutrailed in the AAP national executive meet on March 4, saying both the leaders were right in their stand.

"Bhushan and Yadav are very senior, what they are saying is right. There is no transparency in the party, there is nepotism," she said.

Her remarks came after reports of a tussle among the top AAP leaders came to the fore.

Pro-Kejriwal leaders alleged that Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan and Shanti Bhushan were conspiring against Arvind Kejriwal.

AAP's Delhi secretary Dilip Pandey alleged that Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan and Shanti Bhushan  acted "in concert towards a singular aim of weakening the party and then replacing Kejriwal with Yadav as party head."

He in a letter targeting the anti-Kejriwal group said: "Worst part was when, a few weeks before elections, Mr Prashant Bhushan said in presence of a senior Party Leader and a Mission Vistar member that he would rather want the party to loose the elections so that Kejriwal could be removed and a major overhaul of the party could be carried out. Bhushan refused to campaign for the party and also planted several anti-party stories at a time when the party was going through its most severe crisis."

He said in another part of the letter addressed to Pankaj Gupta, National Secretary, Member (Disciplinary Committee): "Before General Elections, 2014, Mr Vijay Raman, who was personal assistant of Mr Yogendra Yadav and was handling his election campaign, phoned Mr Satya, an important party member and told him that Mr. Yadav wanted to interview him for a role in his core team. When Mr Satya went to meet Raman, the latter told him that Mr Arvind Kejriwal didn't have the required political acumen and it was imperative for Mr Yogendra Yadav to take over as National Convenor of AAP after removing Kejriwal from the post. Mr Satya was shocked to hear this. He informed senior members of the party of how Mr Yadav's office was conspiring against Kejriwal and hatching conspiracies to take over as the party convenor."