Jan Lokpal Bill debate: Kejriwal, Aruna Roy slug it out

NEW DELHI: The public standoff between Aruna Roy and Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal became personal with Roy taking exception to Kejriwal’s statement that he was turned away from a meeting set up to discuss the Lokpal bill.

In a joint statement, National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI) members Roy and Nikhil Dey said they were never against discussions and had met members of Team Anna on three occasions . While the ideological differences between the two groups — Team Anna and NCPRI — on the formulation of the anti-corruption legislation have been apparent for months now, comments allegedly made by Kejriwal have not gone down well with Roy who has been a mentor to Kejriwal.
Roy said, “We have never alleged that Team Anna has not discussed the issue with me (or more appropriately the NCPRI).

In fact, the NCPRI has never refused to engage in dialogue. Mr Kejriwal himself states the issue has been discussed in ‘three meetings’ , so the allegation that we have refused to engage in dialogue is wrong on the face of it.”

She added, “I would like to set the record straight about the highly objectionable personal aspersions allegedly cast on me that ‘when we were supposed to meet her in (veteran journalist) Kuldip Nayar’s house, she sent us back from the gate saying that she didn’t want to talk to me’ . I have not sent, and could not have sent, nor would send anyone back from the gate of anyone’s house. We never saw Mr Kejriwal that day to be able to send him away from the gate.”

Roy clarified that the meeting at Nayar’s house was “personal” and when she was informed that members of India Against Corruption were going to be there, she “made it clear to Mr Kuldip Nayar that neither Nikhil Dey nor I were mandated by the NCPRI to hold discussions on the law or the demands of the campaign.

Roy added that this was a “personal statement’’ and NCPRI would respond to Kejriwal’s contention that NCPRI’s basket of measures on the issue of Lokpal wasn’t an alternative bill or law but merely “a proposal, a concept note” and that many of NCPRI proposals were “unconstitutional” .