AAP plans door-to-door drive, rally over services ordinance

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will undertake a door-to-door campaign before holding a rally at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on June 11 to mobilise public opinion against the ordinance issued last week to restore to the Union government the power over “services” in the national capital.

He said the campaign will run parallel to the party’s efforts to defeat the ordinance when it is presented for approval in Rajya Sabha. “The BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] has a majority in Lok Sabha. CM [chief minister Arvind] Kejriwal has said that we will contact all opposition parties to defeat the bill in Rajya Sabha,” he said.

Kejriwal, who on Sunday met his Bihar counterpart, Nitish Kumar, said the powers from the elected government were snatched. He sought unity among non-BJP parties to prevent parliamentary approval for the ordinance that was promulgated after the Supreme Court on May 11 ruled the Delhi government has control over bureaucrats assigned to departments under its purview.

Ordinances can be issued on any subject that Parliament has the power to make laws. They are required to receive the approval within six weeks of the reassembly of Parliament.