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Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi and the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), hailed Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday for backing his party's opposition to the Centre's law governing the supervision of administrative services in the nation's capital.
His response came before a conference of the opposition in Bengaluru, where over 20 parties would plan a strategy to challenge the BJP-led national government in the lead-up to the Lok Sabha elections next year.
Kejriwal referred to the Delhi ordinance as "anti-national" on his Twitter account.
"Thank you Kharge ji for supporting the Delhi citizens. "We must fight this ordinance with all of our might because it is anti-India and anti-national," he wrote.
After Kharge talked about his party's opposition to the Delhi law, Kejriwal responded, saying that everyone needed to band together to "save the Constitution" and that it wasn't just about one individual.
"This is not just about one individual. In the event that the nation's democracy and constitution are threatened, it is our duty to band together and work together to preserve them. No one is greater than the nation, Kharge told reporters.\
After finally receiving endorsement from the Congress on Sunday, the AAP will attend the opposition summit in Bengaluru. The decision was made after the grand old party made it plain that it will not accept the Centre's ordinance on the control of administrative services in Delhi and pledged its support to the AAP.
Raghav Chadha, the leader of the AAP, hailed the Congress' decision as "a positive development" and praised their "unequivocal opposition" to the Delhi legislation.
The Kejriwal-led party has been rallying support from the opposition parties in an effort to reject the measure in the Rajya Sabha, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lacks a majority. The Congress's support to oppose the ordinance is a boost for that party.
On May 19, the Center introduced an ordinance to limit the authority of Delhi's elected government. The executive order was issued days after the Supreme Court gave Delhi's elected government jurisdiction over all services save those relating to law enforcement, public safety, and land.
Following the national government's action, Kejriwal met with non-BJP parties throughout the country in an effort to rally opposition to the Delhi legislation. According to the AAP leader, the ordinance would dismantle the nation's federal government.
On July 14, the Kejriwal-led Delhi government filed a lawsuit against the ordinance in the Supreme Court, claiming it was "manifestly arbitrary" and "unconstitutional". It demanded an immediate halt to the decree, claiming that it "sidelines the elected government from control over its civil services".
Arvind Kejriwal had asked that the matter be brought up during the opposition meeting in Patna on June 23, but it quickly descended into a political brawl.
Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal, subsequently urged the AAP and the Congress to quickly resolve their disagreements about the Delhi ordinance issue over tea and biscuits. According to insiders, she reminded them that the Patna opposition meeting wasn't the best place for such a conversation.
