Liberal party leadership hopeful Chandra Arya says his party will not be permitting him to run in its leadership contest.
Arya announced his disqualification in an X post on Sunday, thanking those that decided to support his campaign while questioning the legitimacy of the Liberal leadership race.
“Today, I was informed by the Liberal Party of Canada that I will not be permitted to enter the leadership race. While I await their official communication, I am carefully considering my next steps,” said Arya.
“This decision raises significant questions about the legitimacy of the leadership race and, by extension, the legitimacy of the next Prime Minister of Canada.”
The Liberal party has not issued any public communication regarding their decision to disqualify Arya – the Liberal MP for Nepean since 2015. True North reached out to the Liberals for comment, though no response was received.
Arya was among the first entrants in the Liberal leadership race, running an unconventional platform for a Liberal politician.
The Nepean MP pledged to take the party in a radically new direction, proposing to abolish the monarchy, scrap DEI standards for cabinet appointments, raise the age of retirement, and cut the size of government.
In an interview with the CBC, Arya claimed that his inability to speak French was not a problem and downplayed the importance of the French language to the people of Quebec.
“The point is that whether the Quebecers or English Canadians, it’s not the language that matters it’s what is that is delivered to them,” said Arya.
Arya’s campaign received reception, with some Liberals horrified by his comments about French while other Liberals were encouraged by his willingness to change the party’s direction.
Much of the conservative commentariat was amused by Arya’s campaign, reacting to his various policies with mockery or tepid praise.
The field of candidates now includes former central banker Mark Carney, former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, former government House leader Karina Gould, Sydney––Victoria MP Jamie Battiste, former MP Frank Baylis, and former MP Ruby Dhalla.
