Come, join us, Arvind Kejriwal tells CPM veteran

NEW DELHI: Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday extended an invitation to CPM veteran and Kerala opposition leader V S Achuthanandan to join his party.


The invitation came following a meeting between Kejriwal and a close aide of Achuthanandan recently. Senior AAP leader Prashant Bhushan had met the CPM leader a few months earlier.

This comes at a time when Achuthanandan is frequently embarrassing his party through his statements on various issues, including the T P Chandrasekharan murder case in which three CPM leaders are among those convicted.

"I would like to appeal to V S Achuthanandan to please join our party," Kejriwal said. He went on to say that his key enemies of the moment were not any individuals but "corruption and communalism", and that it was an opportune time to make a difference to the future of the country.

The former Delhi CM said Achuthanandan was a respected freedom fighter and would show AAP the way.

The Left leader joining AAP would buoy the party's chances in Kerala. Though AAP has a strong presence in the Hindi belt of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, it is yet to make any significant inroads in states like Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.