Mumbai/New Delhi: In a boost to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), social activist Medha Patkar on Monday extended her “complete” support to the fledging party while left intellectual Kamal Mitra Chenoy joined it.
“We extend our complete support to Aam Aadmi Party. AAP has included fighting corruption in its agenda, while we have been fighting corruption through Adarsh (housing society scam) and Lavasa,” Patkar told reporters in Mumbai.
“We have studied their (AAP’s) documents and we have found that micro to macroeconomic view point is more or less reflected into it. We will further continue with the dialogue and would like to contribute our views in not just the manifesto but also in the working culture and their working documents,” the 59-year-old social activist said.
Patkar, known for her work in the Narmada Bachao Andolan, a movement that is fighting against the construction of large dams on Narmada river in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, also said that she would further announce the future course of action about the role she will play in AAP, after holding discussions with senior AAP leaders on 16 and 17 January.
Attributing the work done by the movements led by Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal on the Jan Lokpal Bill, she said, “The anti-corruption movement has really shown a way.”
Slamming political parties for indulging in corruption, she said, “We do not consider electoral politics as untouchable.”
“We see this party as part of our agenda. With dialogue and deliberations we have decided to support the AAP actively. Active support will be based on both ideological commonality and clarity,” Patkar said.
In Delhi, senior leader Prashant Bhushan announced that Chenoy, a professor in School of International Studies in JNU, was joining the party and said this was a unique case as Chenoy was associated with CPI for 40 years before joining AAP.
“I have worked with Medha Patkar, worked on human rights issues in Manipur and also worked with Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. Politics has been made a game of money. We will fight for the common man,” Chenoy said adding many other professors from the JNU may join the party.
