Led by Raghav Chadha, seven of Aam Aadmi Party's 10 Rajya Sabha MPs announced on Friday they are merging with the Bharatiya Janata Party. They invoked the two-thirds merger provision under the anti-defection law to avoid disqualification. AAP has demanded their disqualification from the Upper House.
In a New Delhi press conference, Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal announced that two-thirds of AAP's Rajya Sabha members are merging with the Bharatiya Janata Party. Chadha stated, "We, 2/3rd of members belonging to the AAP in Rajya Sabha, exercise the provisions of the Constitution of India and merge with the BJP." They submitted a signed letter to Rajya Sabha Chairman CP Radhakrishnan, naming Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta, Vikramjit Singh Sahney and Swati Maliwal among the seven.
AAP leader Sanjay Singh posted on X: "I will submit a letter to the Hon’ble Rajya Sabha Chairman... to declare Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, and Sandeep Pathak disqualified... under the Tenth Schedule." Arvind Kejriwal called it a "shove to Punjabis by BJP once again." Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann accused the rebels of betrayal and BJP of manipulation.
The move comes ahead of Punjab's 2027 assembly polls, where AAP governs. It boosts NDA's Rajya Sabha tally from 141 to 148. Anna Hazare blamed AAP leadership, saying, "If AAP had stayed on the right path, Raghav Chadha wouldn't have left." Pathak's exit, as Kejriwal's close aide during his jail term, delivers a major blow to the party.
