AAP crisis worsens as Kumar Vishwas defies Kejriwal dictat

May 2, 2017

New Delhi, May 2: The crisis in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) following Delhi civic poll debacle took a new turn on Tuesday with senior leader Kumar Vishwas saying he will take a decision soon, a remark that set tongues wagging about his future course of action.

Vishwas virtually defied Delhi Chief Minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal's dictat to senior leaders not to air their views and grievances before cameras and spoke to media in the evening to drop the bombshell that all was not well in the party yet.

In veiled criticism, he targeted Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, saying they can continue to be the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister respectively but one should not ignore those party workers who have suffered for building the party.

"I have already said that I do not want to become the Chief Minister or Deputy Chief Minister or party chief. I am not going to join any party or any Swaraj andolan. I have not come for that. I will take a decision tonight and I will not seek apology for his statements," an emotional Vishwas told reporters.

Sisodia had on Monday said that there was criticism about the video post of Vishwas in the PAC meeting.

Sisodia hit back at Vishwas later, saying he is making statements on TV which is demoralising AAP volunteers. “Why doesn't he come to the PAC?” Sisodia asked.

His response came amid reports that some MLAs had approached Kejriwal with allegations that Vishwas told some of them that Delhi would soon have a new Chief Minister.

The poet-turned politician's comments came a day after his one of his bete-noires Amanatullah Khan quit the Political Affairs Committee (PAC), the highest decision-making body in the party, following criticism against him. Khan continued his attack on Vishwas, who had given interviews against party leadership after poll drubbing, even after his resignation.

Vishwas, who refused to attend Monday night's PAC meeting, said he knows the people behind Khan who are trying to conspire against him. A section of MLAs from Punjab and Delhi, who are close to Vishwas, had written to party leaders against Khan while two Ministers in Delhi took to Twitter to attack the latter.

The latest outburst by Vishwas came even as Kejriwal has scheduled meetings with party MLAs to gather feedback and their views on the functioning of the party and government. Kejriwal is also planning a reshuffle in the party and possibly in the government too.

Sources said the leadership is also miffed at Vishwas as they tried to assuage his feelings by making Khan quit the high-level body. Vishwas believes that a faction led by Sanjay Singh is trying to undermine him in the party.

The party is facing such a huge crisis for the second time in a little over one year. Earlier, founder members Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav left the party after the huge Delhi Assembly election victory, claiming that several undesirable elements were given poll tickets.

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‘Pay the worker before his sweat dries’: Madras High Court cites Prophet Muhammad’s teaching while ordering settlement of dues

News Network

December 21,2025

Invoking the teachings of Prophet Muhammad—“pay the worker before his sweat dries”—the Madras High Court has directed a municipal corporation to settle long-pending legal dues owed to a former counsel. The court observed that this principle reflects basic fairness and applies equally to labour and service-related disputes.

Justice G. R. Swaminathan made the observation while hearing a petition filed by advocate P. Thirumalai, who claimed that the Madurai City Municipal Corporation failed to pay him legal fees amounting to ₹13.05 lakh. Earlier, the High Court had asked the corporation to consider his representation. However, a later order rejected a major portion of his claim, prompting the present petition.

The court allowed Thirumalai to approach the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) and submit a list of cases in which he had appeared. It also directed the corporation to settle the verified fee bills within two months, without interest. The court noted that the petitioner had waited nearly 18 years before challenging the non-payment and that the corporation could not be fully blamed, as the fee bills were not submitted properly.

‘A Matter of Embarrassment’

Justice Swaminathan described it as a “matter of embarrassment” that the State has nearly a dozen Additional Advocate Generals. He observed that appointing too many law officers often leads to unnecessary allocation of work and frequent adjournments, as government counsel claim that senior officers are engaged elsewhere.

He expressed hope that such practices would end at least in the Madurai Bench of the High Court and added that Additional Advocate Generals should “turn a new leaf” from 2026 onwards.

‘Scandalously High Amounts’

While stating that the court cannot examine the exact fees paid to senior counsel or law officers, Justice Swaminathan stressed that good governance requires public funds to be used prudently. He expressed concern over the “scandalously high amounts” paid by government and quasi-government bodies to a few favoured law officers.

In contrast, the court noted that Thirumalai’s total claim was “a pittance” considering the large number of cases he had handled.

Background

Thirumalai served as the standing counsel for the Madurai City Municipal Corporation for more than 14 years, from 1992 to 2006. During this period, he represented the corporation in about 818 cases before the Madurai District Courts.

As the former counsel was unable to hire a clerk to obtain certified copies of judgments in all 818 cases, the court directed the District Legal Services Authority to collect the certified copies within two months. The court further ordered the corporation to bear the cost incurred by the DLSA and deduct that amount from the final settlement payable to the petitioner.

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