AAP falling 'prey to personality cult': Yogendra Yadav

New Delhi: Differences within the top leaders of the AAP came to the fore as senior leader Yogendra Yadav has charged the party with falling "prey to personality cult" and that decisions taken reflected the wishes of party chief Arvind Kejriwal.

"There is a widespread perception among the workers and sympathisers as well as external observers that the party is falling prey to the disease of personality cult that afflicts all the political parties in the country," Yadav said in a letter to party's Political Affairs Committee (PAC), from which he resigned last week after his spat with Haryana convener Naveen Jaihind. The letter was also written, explaining the reasons on why he quit from the party's all powerful PAC.

"Major decisions of the party appear to, and indeed do, reflect the wishes of one person; when he changes his mind, the party changes its course of action; proximity to the Leader comes to substitute for organisational roles and responsibilities.

"Since all the decisions and successes are credited to one person, all the blame also begins to accumulate at the doors of one person," Yadav said.

The AAP leader, who is known to be a key party strategist, also termed Kejriwal as "supremo" and that the love and affection for him were damaging the party.

"There is no one who doubts that Arvind bhai is the undisputed leader within the party. He has richly earned this stature and we would not be where we are without his leadership.

"But there is a difference between a Leader and a Supremo. Love and affection for a leader often turns into a personality cult that can damage an organisation and the leader himself. This is what appears to be happening to our party," Yadav said.

Interestingly, senior party leader and Kejriwal's close aide Manish Sisodia shot a letter in response to Yadav's letter accusing him of targeting the party chief and making internal matters public.

"When you wanted to become Haryana in-charge and wanted to be projected as the CM candidate despite opposition from other PAC members, Arvind backed you. At that time he was democratic (for you). The state of affairs of the party in Haryana is in a shambles," Sisodia said.