‘Kejriwal can’t live without power': Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu amid Rajya Sabha speculation

Union minister of state for railways, Ravneet Singh Bittu on Wednesday slammed Arvind Kejriwal, claiming that the AAP leader couldn't live without power amid speculation of him seeking a Rajya Sabha seat.

Earlier on Wednesday, AAP announced the nomination of Rajya Sabha MP Sanjiv Arora as the candidate for the Ludhiana West assembly by-poll, causing rumours that Arvind Kejriwal would take Arora's Rajya Sabha seat.

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“We were repeatedly saying that this man (Arvind Kejriwal) cannot live without power. If Sanjeev Arora wins the MLA seat, he cannot hold both the posts of MP and MLA. If he loses, they will tell him that you lost the MLA seat, why should we give you the MP seat now, both heads and tails are Arvind Kejriwal's,” news agency ANI quoted Ravneet Singh Bittu as he reacted to the speculation.

The Union minister also alleged that, “The election has not even been announced yet, yet it is possible that Sanjeev Arora's resignation (from Rajya Sabha) may be taken beforehand so that Arvind Kejriwal becomes an MP."

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After news broke of Arvind Kejriwal potentially becoming a Rajya Sabha MP, BJP leader Amit Malviya questioned the decision to field Sanjiv Arora for the Ludhiana West by-poll.

“Is this being done to clear the path for Arvind Kejriwal, who just lost his own seat in New Delhi, to get nominated to the Rajya Sabha from Punjab? Wouldn't it be better if someone from Punjab represented the state instead of Kejriwal? Has AAP also promised its Rajya Sabha MP a ministerial position once he wins and vacates his seat? This kind of transactional politics must be condemned,” said Malviya in a post on X.

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He added, “The people of Ludhiana must defeat Sanjeev Arora so that he cannot offer his seat to Arvind Kejriwal without losing his own.”

AAP denies claims

AAP spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar on Wednesday denied claims alleging that Arvind Kejriwal would seek a Rajya Sabha seat in light of Sanjiv Arora contesting in the Ludhiana West by-polls.

She claimed that the media sources were wrong and said, “Arvind Kejriwal is not going to Rajya Sabha. As far as Arvind Kejriwal is concerned, media sources were earlier saying that he will become the Chief Minister of Punjab. Now, media sources are saying that he will contest from Rajya Sabha. Both these sources are absolutely wrong.”

On Kejriwal's future in electoral politics she stated, “Arvind Kejriwal is the national convenor of AAP. I agree that his demand is very high, but he is not limited to any one seat."

Arvind Kejriwal, who was the former chief minister of Delhi, recently lost his Delhi assembly seat to BJP leader and current Delhi minister Parvesh Sahib Singh.