AAP suspends national executive member Rakesh Sinha

Mr. Sinha had questioned the sacking of Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav from the national executive without referring the case to the party’s internal Lokpal as per norms.

The purge in the Aam Aadmi party continues as the party, on Thursday, suspended national executive member Rakesh Sinha after he raised questions over the way its internal Lokpal Admiral L. Ramdas was sacked and Prashant Bhushan was removed as the chief of its disciplinary committee.

Mr. Sinha, a party leader from Uttar Pradesh, had accused the AAP leadership of taking the decisions to remove Mr. Ramdas and Mr. Bhushan in a hurry from the two crucial posts and without due consultations of all members of the national executive.

Sources in the party said that Mr. Sinha and another member from UP, Vishal Lathe, had been suspended from the party while an inquiry was pending. The two were part of the press conference convened by Yogendra Yadav and Bhushan after their ouster from the National Executive on March 28.

On Wednesday, AAPs Tamil Nadu state convener and the only womam member of the party's national executive resigned from her post in protest at the way Mr. Bhushan and Mr. Yadav were removed from key positions in the party. Miss Samy was one of the members , who had voted against the resolution which sought removal of the two leaders from the Political Affairs Committee (PAC) on March 4.

In her resignation letter, Miss Samy said, "I am resigning from my post in the national executive committee as I feel volunteers have been betrayed. AAP has lost trust in its own founding principles and the constitution and system of Lokpal. It has shattered the hopes and dreams of millions of common people.''

"If what Mr Prashant Bushan and Mr Yogendra Yadav claim are false, why was the system we ourselves created – the Internal Lokpal - not implemented," her letter added.