Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore
Mangalore, Mar 22: Hours after Aam Aadmi Party's candidate M R Vasudeva filed his nomination on Saturday March 22 amid opposition from the party's past convener Robert Rosario, the party issued a media release stating that Robert Rosario was dismissed from the Aam Aadmi Party's core committee a few months ago for taking part in anti-party activities.
The media release states:
"Aam Aadmi Party Dakshina Kannada past convener Robert Rosario was dismissed from the Aam Aadmi Party's core committee a few months ago for taking part in anti-party activities. Robert Rosario had resigned earlier as a co-convenor and was demoted to an ordinary member by a resolution passed by the executive committee. However, he continues to project the impression that he is a spokesperson of the party.
"The party has been extremely tolerant of his anti-party behaviour in representing himself as the party spokesman despite being informed not to do so," said Rohan Shiri, secretary of the Party.
"Freedom of speech is an inherent right of every Indian citizen and Rosario can express his opinion as a Party member,” said Saad Khaja Mohammad, AAP's youth representative. "We have not come here to divide. We have come to stay united and Vasudeva is the icon for us and we stand united behind him."
"I was present during a meeting of the party wherein he (Robert Rosario) tendered his resignation. As a disgruntled person, he is playing dirty now due to interpersonal differences," said J Shriyan.
"The following is the text of a clarification that was provided by the party on February 18:
"Robert Rosario's resignation in the meeting dated November 22, 2013 was the culmination of a sequence of many events during which Rosario was taking unilateral decisions, not taking the committee into confidence. Fighting with the preparatory committee members had become the order of the day. The party's growth suffered and the meetings only ended with discussions and nothing more. On December 19 in a joint meeting of the executive committee and advisory committee chaired by senior advisory committee member Dr Satish Rao, the committee members ended up asking him to be removed. Rosario on his turn declared that he was ready to step down. The members then decided to handover the functional responsibility of party affairs to joint convenor Dharmendra.
"In the meeting of executive committee dated December 30, Dharmendra as convener and Rohan Shiri as secretary were nominated to own responsibility assigned to them to represent the district and expand the organisation.
"Even after resigning from the post, Robert Rosario attended the subsequent committee meeting (s) called by the new committee on January 3, 2014 in which, Rosario had not raised any objection on the new team, rather continued to fight with other members of the committee on trivial issues. In fact, Rosario refused to sign the attendance register stating that he ceased to be a member of the executive committee and hence would not sign.
"As Rosario was controlling the party email account, which he did not hand over even after stepping down - it prompted the executive committee to expel him from the committee for 3 months in its meeting dated January 9.
"A special note in the party's membership form states, ”If anyone is found indulging in activities against the objectives and against the party's mode of functioning, his/her membership shall stand cancelled."
"Rosario's behaviour today outside the election office to coincide with Vasudeva presenting his nomination papers, was not appreciated by all the other AAP members present. The AAP has expelled Robert from the party."