We know one path can lead to political goondaism: AAP leader Manish Sisodia
Senior AAP leader and Delhi Urban Development Minister Manish Sisodia Wednesday said there is a possibility that the party’s cadre could indulge in “political goondaism” and that senior leaders were “scared” and “conscious” of this.
The AAP leadership, he said, would send out a strong message to volunteers indulging in such practices. Speaking at the Idea Exchange programme of The Indian Express, Sisodia, a founder-member of AAP, said the issue was very sensitive. “I will honestly say that one path for the party is towards goondaism. Political goondaism. We have seen this a lot in India, when a political party comes to power and the party’s followers, in the name of power or the ruling party, resort to goondaism. We are very scared and we are conscious about that,” Sisodia said.
According to the debutant minister, it was necessary to ensure such activities be stopped as soon as possible. “I agree that strict action should be taken against any AAP volunteer or party member or anybody masquerading as one in an AAP cap. It is paramount that we show how serious we are about this even if it involves a close volunteer,” Sisodia said.
However, Sisodia also maintained that although the party leadership was against goondaism, it was important for society to get involved. “For example, take the education volunteers. They have been vetted by me and are not AAP party members. I can vouch for each of them and they have no authority other than to observe and report to me of the condition of schools,” he said.
The minister also said that more than a mechanism, it was important to send a message. “What you do once such an incident is reported is important. If this (goondaism) comes to our notice, we will hit back and hit back hard. We will hit back so strongly that the message will go out among all our volunteers,” Sisodia said.
