AAP says will not form government in Delhi

Delhi was hurtling fast towards President's Rule with Aam Admi Party (AAP), the second largest group in Delhi assembly with 28 seats, today saying it will not form a government.

After a meeting of senior leaders, AAP leader Yogendra Yadav told the media that when legislature party chairman Arvind Kejriwal meets Lt Governor Najeeb Jung tomorrow, he will tell him that the party does not have the majority and was not inclined to form a government.u00a0

"The Lt Governor has sent a letter to Kejriwal formally inviting AAP to discuss government formation. We are going to meet him at 10:30 am. We will explain to him our position. We will tell him that we do not have majority. Also we are not the largest party in the assembly. We will put before him all these views. We do not favour manipulative politics," Yadav said.

He said they will submit a memorandum explaining their position. Yadav claimed that because of AAP, the other parties have also changed their strategy by not staking their claim contrary to their earlier practice elsewhere of forming governments by hook or crook.

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal. File pic

Yesterday, the BJP, which is the single largest party with 31 seats plus ally Akali Dal's lone seat, turned down the Lt Governor's offer for government formation.

A party needs at least 36 seats in the House of 70 members to form a government.

After a meeting with Jung who invited him to discuss government formation, party's chief ministerial nominee Harsh Vardhan said BJP would like to sit in the opposition in view of the lack of clear mandate by people of Delhi.

"With BJP emerging as the single largest party in Delhi polls, Lt Governor invited me to discuss government formation. We have conveyed to him that we do not have enough seats and in view of lack of clear mandate, the party would like to sit in the opposition," Vardhan said yesterday.

Vardhan said if any other party was interested in forming a government they are welcome but remained non-committal whether BJP would support such a formation.

There have been suggestions that AAP, which made an electrifying debut, should form the government with outside support of either BJP or Congress, a view rejected outright by the debutant party.

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