Puducherry: Aam Admi Party leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called on his Puducherry counterpart V. Narayanasamy, whose sit-in protest against Lt Governor Kiran Bedi entered its sixth day on Monday.
Mr Kejriwal who had already extended his support to Mr Narayanasamy's protest, flew down to Puducherry and demanded the complete statehood for the Union Territory as a solution to the problem.
Saying that the meeting was "not political", Mr Kejriwal said that Puducherry and Delhi would fight together for statehood.
"It is important extend the support to Mr Narayanasamy. The Lt Govenor by unnecessarily intervening in the government is not allowing an elected administration to run", he said.
Mr Kejriwal, who had staged a nine-day dharna last ye-ar at the waiting room at Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal in Delhi, said that elected representatives sitting in dharna had become the norm. "Full statehood status should be given to the Union Territories including Puducherry and New Delhi where the powers of the elected governments are being cut down through Lt Governors appointed by the Centre," he said.
The meeting of Mr Kejriwal and Mr Narayanasamy got wide political attention as it comes in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls and amid attempts to form a a nationwide alliance of Opposition parties.
Earlier, Ms Bedi held talks with Mr Narayansamy and his colleagues after curtailing her tour of Delhi and returning to Puducherry on Sunday afternoon.
"Hoping after the evening meeting today, the Cabinet shall return to their offices. And visitors to Raj Nivas can come. As also petitioners for Open House. And Municipal park across RajNivas returns to morning walkers, (sic)" said Ms Bedi.
The meeting which started at about 6 pm continued till late in the night and the details of the discussion were not known.
On the other hand the Congress demanded the intervention of the Centre to end the protest in Puducherry
Senior Congress leaders Ahmed Patel, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mukul Wasnik and Anand Sharma wrote to home minister Rajnath Singh, bringing to his notice the actions of Ms Bedi in Puducherry.
In Puducherry, Mr Narayanasamy, ministers and Congress workers launched a campaign of sending post cards to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to recall Ms Bedi.
