Ashtosh was once considered to close aide of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. (File Photo/PTI)
Days after quitting the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Ashutosh has finally broken his silence attacking party's leadership. Ashutosh, without taking AAP national convener and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal's name, accused the party top brass of playing 'caste politics'.
The journalist-turned-politician took to Twitter to launch a stinging attack on AAP management and said that despite his reluctance to reveal his caste, the party leadership made it a point to let the workers know about his 'surname' during 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
"In 23 years of my journalism, no one asked my caste, surname. Was known by my name. But as I was introduced to party workers as LOKSABHA candidate in 2014 my surname was promptly mentioned despite my protest," Ashutosh said in his tweet.
The former AAP leader added that later he was told that it was necessary to do so as there were huge number of voters belonging his caste.
"Sir aap jeetogey kaise, aapki jaati ke yahan kaafi votes hain," Ashutosh said without naming the person who made the remark. He contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Chandni Chowk against against Kapil Sibal of Congress and Harsh Vardhan of the BJP but lost.
Ashutosh had earlier said that leaving AAP was his personal decision and has so far been reluctant to say much about it.
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If reports are to be believed Ashutosh had been upset with party leadership ever since he was denied a Rajya Sabha ticket earlier this year. Arvind Kejriwal's decision to nominate businessman Sushil Gupta and chartered accountant Narain Dass Gupta for the Rajya Sabha along with party leader Sanjay Singh didn't go down well with leaders like Ashutosh, Kumar Vishwas and others.
