Swaraj India: Ex-AAP leaders Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan launch new political party, slam AAP's cult politics

Former Aam Aadmi Party leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan on Sunday launched a new political outfit ‘Swaraj India’ and declared it will contest Delhi civic polls but will skip Punjab election scheduled next year.

"Forming a new party for alternative politics is a sacred duty," tweeted Yadav, attributing the quote to Bhushan.

Lashing out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for “betraying the aam aadmi”, Yadav, who will head the new party, said it would offer “alternative politics” and not resort to “cult politics”.

Swaraj Abhiyan, an organisation, formed by the duo after their expulsion from the AAP in April last year, said the outfit will continue to exist as a separate entity, giving people who don’t wish to participate in electoral politics an alternative platform.

Bhushan will head the organisation. Abhiyan has been campaigning on varied issues, ranging from agriarian crisis to corruption.

“Now that we are a political party, it is not that we will contest every election. Politics in Punjab is very fluid and the need of the hour is to defeat the Badal government, which is the most hated organisation in the country,” Yadav said.

“We will support (suspended AAP MP) Dharamvira Gandhi, who has already announced a front. We will be contesting the MCD polls,” he added.

Bhushan said Swaraj India will not only bring itself under the ambit of RTI, but it will also not use party whip on MLAs and MPs and restrict it to no-confidence motion.

“Our members will have the freedom to express their opinion contrary to the one shared by the party, which doesn’t exist in other parties,” he said. 

Forming a new party for alternative politics is a sacred duty -- Prashant Bhushan at founding convention of Swaraj India

— Yogendra Yadav (@_YogendraYadav) October 2, 2016

Earlier on 31 July, both leaders have declared that launching of a political party by October 2 to provide an “alternative political vehicle” even as they hit out at AAP saying it has a “supremo” culture.