Press Releases Archive

Loksatta Party on Saturday expelled former Delhi unit president Mr. Anurag Kejriwal from its membership, with immediate effect for the gross violation of the code of ethics and principles that the party advocates and has scrupulously followed for the past 18 years.

Mr.Kejriwal was expelled after a sting operation by a news channel in which he was seen bragging about his ability to influence the party leadership to work for certain vested interests. He also expressed willingness to field Dummy candidates in the Delhi assembly election to undercut other parties and was seen discussing the quantum of funding required for the party's Campaign currently underway in Andhra Pradesh. LSP National President Dr.Jayaprakash Narayan is the frontrunner for the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha seat in Hyderabad.

Mr. Surendra Srivastava, Loksatta Party's National General Secretary in a statement said that LSP decided to expel Mr. Kejriwal for making false claims and trying to bring the party's name into disrepute. The party is also exploring the possibility of other action against him.

Mr. Kejriwal was earlier asked to resign as the Delhi State President and from the National Steering Committee of the party. The expulsion is in line with the exemplary standards of conduct set by LokSatta Party in public life. This should send an unambiguous message that the party has absolutely zero-tolerance for such acts of indiscretions which seeks to strike the very edifice of high moral standards and the basic ideals of the party.

The National General Secretary described as poppycock Mr. Kejriwal's claims of putting up dummy candidates and disrupting parliamentary sessions at the behest of vested interests. He said candidate selection in Loksatta Party is not done by one individual but through a process of primaries while the track record of Dr Jayaprakash Narayan as a legislator in the outgoing Andhra Pradesh assembly spoke for itself.

Such acts jeopardize the selfless contributions of LokSatta Party members and volunteers that have made it the pioneer of clean politics and the supporters of the party should rest assured that the Party will always act decisively to preserve its character and reputation as the agents of positive change in Indian politics. LokSatta Party firmly believes that personal integrity is a sine-quo-non for probity in public life.

Mr. Srivastava further said Loksatta Party had always supported policies that were in the national interest irrespective of who promoted them and would continue to do so. He said, LSP had worked with parties across the spectrum to champion laws that would help clean up the country's polity, such as The Right to Information Act, The election funding law, The candidates disclosures, The Lokpal Bill, The Right to Services Bill and The National Judicial Commission Bill etc.

Mr. Srivastava also said Loksatta Party accepts donations only by cheque and never in cash.

LSP National General Secretary Mr. Surendra Srivastava also announced that the working committee and executive committee of the Delhi State unit had been suspended and a five-member interim panel of Loksatta's youth leaders has been set up to run the party's affairs until further notice.

Mr.Achyutam Kallani, 29, a banker by profession, will be the convener of the panel. The other members are Mr. Siddharth Panwar, 30, a researcher; Mr. Hemant Chandak, 33, corporate professional, Mr. Dushyant Arora, 26, a lawyer and Mr. Anuj Middha, 26, an entrepreneur.

Mr. Achyutam Kallani may be contacted at 0 981 1546 269 or achyutamkalyani@gmail.com

The credit for electing a BC as its State President goes to the Loksatta Party which shuns politics of dynasty. This is in sharp contrast to other parties which promise higher representation to BCs in elected offices on the eve of elections. While some promise top positions in the party to BCs some others offer even the post of Chief Minister.

Stating this at a meeting held at the party headquarters to pay tributes to Jotirao Phule on his birth anniversary, State Loksatta Party President Katari Srinivasa Rao said that the Loksatta alone has institutional arrangements to facilitate those with competence and commitment to rise to any position irrespective of their caste. That was why one out of every three candidates it named in the 2009 general elections was a BC. Of the 45 candidates contesting the Assembly elections in Telangana in 2014, 19 are BCs, six SCs and two STs.

Mr. Srinivasa Rao pointed out that the Loksatta has made education its focus of attention in tune with Phule’s maxim that education alone will enable everyone to lead a life of dignity. He cautioned people to beware of parties which offer temporary sops and loan waivers to lure their votes instead of talking about providing quality education and healthcare and employment opportunities to all.

He recalled that leaders like Narayan Guru, Ambedkar, Ramaswamy Periyar and Gandhi carried forward the fight initiated by Phule against caste and gender-based discrimination. Thanks to the advent of technology and urbanization, the present generation has the opportunity to realize their dreams. It should utilize the opportunity by becoming partners in promoting good politics.

Loksatta Party leaders Nandipet Ravinder, P. Bhaskara Rao, K. Gita Murthy, Dosapati Ramu, Thummanapalle Srinivas and Durga Ramachandra Rao were among those who took part in the program.