AAP's nationwide membership drive, sets 1 crore target by January 26 // AAP to contest all 26 LS seats in Gujarat
NEW DELHI: Buoyed by its spectacular success in Delhi assembly polls, the Aam Aadmi Party on Friday kicked off a nationwide membership drive with an aim of including at least one crore members by January 26 to strengthen the party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
AAP leader and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said under the 'Main bhi aam aadmi' campaign, any citizen can enroll as member of the party without paying any fee. "Our target is to include one crore members in the party by January 26. But the membership drive will continue after that as well," he said addressing a press conference. He said the party had decided to waive off the Rs 10 membership fee as it was found out that many people could not afford it. "The decision to waive off the membership fee was taken at the national executive meeting last week," he said.
Party leader Gopal Rai, who has been tasked to oversee the special membership drive, said over 3 lakh people have registered online as party members after the Delhi elections.
"This is perhaps the first time in the history of India that membership to a party is being opened to public like this. This is our biggest countrywide drive to connect with people before the Lok Sabha polls," Rai said. "Success of this campaign is one of our major strategies before the Lok Sabha polls," he said. Rai said the whole campaign will check the "ground reality" of the party's prospects in the Lok Sabha polls to a certain level. "A lot will depend on this campaign. We will get to know how much response is coming and from which areas," he said.
Kejriwal said any citizen can give a missed call on mobile number 07798220033 to enroll as a party member. They can also send SMS of their name, STD code and Vidhan Sabha name after which they will get their membership number.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Kejriwal-launches-AAPs-nationwide-membership-drive-sets-1-crore-target-by-January-26/articleshow/28631240.cms
AAP to contest all 26 LS seats in Gujarat
AHMEDABAD: In disarray in Gujarat, Congress may be anything but an electoral threat to the BJP. But the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) wave sweeping the state could be a cause of concern for Narendra Modi, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate. The spectacular debut by Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP in the Delhi assembly elections has resulted in a massive upsurge of support for the fledgling party across Modi's Gujarat. AAP functionaries claimed they are enrolling hundreds of members in the state every day and expect the numbers to swell in the weeks ahead. AAP is targeting to enroll six lakh members before the Lok Sabha polls.
The Gujarat unit of AAP has decided to field candidates from all the 26 Lok Sabha seats in the state. The party plans to hit the roads and organise rallies in every parliamentary constituency. AAP teams have already started touching upon issues, seemingly small but nagging ones which have a connect with the masses. For example, AAP members carried out a survey on the rule at the Sardar Patel International Airport which has made it mandatory for visitors to pay Rs 60 as parking charges if they take more than five minutes to drop their relatives.
They also extended their support to the strike of sanitation workers in Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), demanding regularisation of daily-wagers. AAP members have also started surveys on issues like corruption, donation in colleges, high fees, women's security and law and order situation. "Besides corruption, we will also raise the issue of exploitation of natural resources and handing them over to private companies," said Sukhdev Patel, state convenor of AAP. The 56-year-old leader has been championing the cause of child rights and education, especially children of salt pan workers.
Much before launching AAP, Kejriwal, as a member of then Team Anna, had joined a farmers' agitation in Lavad village of Ahmedabad district against giving away 'gauchar' land (community grazing land) for Modi's pet project - Raksha Shakti University. Recently, AAP even got a formidable face in Gujarat when former BJP MLA Dr Kanubhai Kalsaria joined its ranks. A suregeon, Kalsaria had spearheaded the agitation against detergent giant Nirma's proposed power plant in Mahuva near Bhavnagar.
Besides noted danseuse Mallika Sarabhai, large number of social activists, technocrats and students from premier institutions like Indian Institute of Management (IIM-A) have come into the AAP-fold. Sanjeev Srivastava, an IIT Rookee pass-out, left the high paying job as vice president of Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) to join AAP as its state secretary. Srivastava has also worked with ONGC for 16 years besides other petroleum sector MNCs. Dinesh Vaghela, who raised AAP units in Goa and Gujarat, is a successful businessman and Osho follower. The mantle of election campaign rests with Anirudhsinh Jadeja, son of veteran Gandhian Chandubhai Jadeja who had worked for Vinoba Bhave's Bhudan movement. The youngest member of AAP, Harshil Nayak, is the media coordinator for the party.
In south Gujarat, AAP's march is being led by Kishore Desai, a former college principal and a close follower of principles of Gandhi, Vinoba Bhave and Jayprakash Narayan. Desai was among the first from Gujarat to join Anna's Jan Lokpal movement.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/AAP-to-contest-all-26-Lok-Sabha-seats-in-Modis-den/articleshow/28656884.cms
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AAP leader and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said under the 'Main bhi aam aadmi' campaign, any citizen can enroll as member of the party without paying any fee. "Our target is to include one crore members in the party by January 26. But the membership drive will continue after that as well," he said addressing a press conference. He said the party had decided to waive off the Rs 10 membership fee as it was found out that many people could not afford it. "The decision to waive off the membership fee was taken at the national executive meeting last week," he said.
Party leader Gopal Rai, who has been tasked to oversee the special membership drive, said over 3 lakh people have registered online as party members after the Delhi elections.
"This is perhaps the first time in the history of India that membership to a party is being opened to public like this. This is our biggest countrywide drive to connect with people before the Lok Sabha polls," Rai said. "Success of this campaign is one of our major strategies before the Lok Sabha polls," he said. Rai said the whole campaign will check the "ground reality" of the party's prospects in the Lok Sabha polls to a certain level. "A lot will depend on this campaign. We will get to know how much response is coming and from which areas," he said.
Kejriwal said any citizen can give a missed call on mobile number 07798220033 to enroll as a party member. They can also send SMS of their name, STD code and Vidhan Sabha name after which they will get their membership number.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Kejriwal-launches-AAPs-nationwide-membership-drive-sets-1-crore-target-by-January-26/articleshow/28631240.cms
AAP to contest all 26 LS seats in Gujarat
AHMEDABAD: In disarray in Gujarat, Congress may be anything but an electoral threat to the BJP. But the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) wave sweeping the state could be a cause of concern for Narendra Modi, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate. The spectacular debut by Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP in the Delhi assembly elections has resulted in a massive upsurge of support for the fledgling party across Modi's Gujarat. AAP functionaries claimed they are enrolling hundreds of members in the state every day and expect the numbers to swell in the weeks ahead. AAP is targeting to enroll six lakh members before the Lok Sabha polls.
The Gujarat unit of AAP has decided to field candidates from all the 26 Lok Sabha seats in the state. The party plans to hit the roads and organise rallies in every parliamentary constituency. AAP teams have already started touching upon issues, seemingly small but nagging ones which have a connect with the masses. For example, AAP members carried out a survey on the rule at the Sardar Patel International Airport which has made it mandatory for visitors to pay Rs 60 as parking charges if they take more than five minutes to drop their relatives.
They also extended their support to the strike of sanitation workers in Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), demanding regularisation of daily-wagers. AAP members have also started surveys on issues like corruption, donation in colleges, high fees, women's security and law and order situation. "Besides corruption, we will also raise the issue of exploitation of natural resources and handing them over to private companies," said Sukhdev Patel, state convenor of AAP. The 56-year-old leader has been championing the cause of child rights and education, especially children of salt pan workers.
Much before launching AAP, Kejriwal, as a member of then Team Anna, had joined a farmers' agitation in Lavad village of Ahmedabad district against giving away 'gauchar' land (community grazing land) for Modi's pet project - Raksha Shakti University. Recently, AAP even got a formidable face in Gujarat when former BJP MLA Dr Kanubhai Kalsaria joined its ranks. A suregeon, Kalsaria had spearheaded the agitation against detergent giant Nirma's proposed power plant in Mahuva near Bhavnagar.
Besides noted danseuse Mallika Sarabhai, large number of social activists, technocrats and students from premier institutions like Indian Institute of Management (IIM-A) have come into the AAP-fold. Sanjeev Srivastava, an IIT Rookee pass-out, left the high paying job as vice president of Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) to join AAP as its state secretary. Srivastava has also worked with ONGC for 16 years besides other petroleum sector MNCs. Dinesh Vaghela, who raised AAP units in Goa and Gujarat, is a successful businessman and Osho follower. The mantle of election campaign rests with Anirudhsinh Jadeja, son of veteran Gandhian Chandubhai Jadeja who had worked for Vinoba Bhave's Bhudan movement. The youngest member of AAP, Harshil Nayak, is the media coordinator for the party.
In south Gujarat, AAP's march is being led by Kishore Desai, a former college principal and a close follower of principles of Gandhi, Vinoba Bhave and Jayprakash Narayan. Desai was among the first from Gujarat to join Anna's Jan Lokpal movement.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/AAP-to-contest-all-26-Lok-Sabha-seats-in-Modis-den/articleshow/28656884.cms
Bharat Bhushan - AAP: Modi’s nightmare
Kejriwal hits out at Modi, says it’s ‘free for all’ in Gujarat (2012)
Bharat Bhushan - Project Modi Inc.
End of the Left in India?
