In a major setback for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), seven of its Rajya Sabha MPs, including Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal, resigned from the party on Friday.
Chadha, who was recently removed as AAP’s deputy leader in the upper house of parliament and replaced by Mittal, announced that two-thirds of AAP’s Rajya Sabha MPs had decided to leave the party and merge with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as a separate faction. He also mentioned that party MPs Harbhajan Singh and Swati Maliwal were among those who quit AAP.
“We, two-thirds of the members of parliament who belong to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Rajya Sabha, will apply the provisions of the Constitution of India and merge with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP),” Raghav Chadha said on X, emphasizing this constitutional stance.
Why these 7 RS MPs will not lose their seats despite leaving AAP?
According to Clause 4 of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, Rajya Sabha members can avoid disqualification under the anti-defection rules if at least two-thirds of their party’s legislators agree to merge with another political party.
According to Chadha, AAP has a total of 10 Rajya Sabha MPs and with seven of them leaving the party, the two-thirds requirement has been met.
He said he has a letter confirming the formation of a separate block and its merger with the BJP, signed by four other AAP Rajya Sabha members. He named along with Ashok Mittal, who recently replaced him as Deputy Leader of AAP in the Rajya Sabha, Sandeep Pathak, Rajinder Gupta, Harbhajan Singh, Vikramjit Singh Sahney and Swati Maliwal as part of the group.
Read also | Raghav Chadha news LIVE: Chadha, Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal join BJP
“In the Rajya Sabha, the Aam Aadmi Party has 10 MPs. More than two-thirds of them are with us on this initiative. They have already signed and we have submitted all the required documentation to the Rajya Sabha Speaker this morning, including signed letters and other formal documents,” Chadha said, according to PTI.
What if Raghav Chadha left AAP alone?
If Raghav Chadha quits AAP on his own, he would lose his Rajya Sabha seat under the anti-defection law. Generally, a legislator can be disqualified for renouncing party membership or voting against a party whip.
Read also | Raghav Chadha, 6 more AAP Rajya Sabha MPs to join BJP. full list
Who are the three remaining AAP Rajya Sabha MPs?
As of now, the three MPs who continue to remain in AAP are Sanjay Singh, Balbir Singh Seechewal and ND Gupta.
Why couldn’t AAP unseat him?
If a party expels an MP, the member does not automatically lose his Rajya Sabha seat as provided by law. This meant that if the AAP removed him from the party, he could still remain in Parliament and take a stand against the AAP. The only way to challenge this would be for the party to prove anti-party activities, a long and subjective process decided by the Rajya Sabha Speaker.
Chadha settled the situation and managed to get the support he needed today.
Read also | “Zameen se utha kar…”: AAP, Kejriwal outraged as Raghav Chadha quits AAP among 7
The AAP suffered a major setback in Punjab as six of the seven Rajya Sabha MPs who quit the party are from the state. These MPs were elected in 2022 after AAP won an overwhelming majority in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha elections. With their exit, the party is now left with only one Punjab-based Rajya Sabha MP, environmentalist and spiritual leader Balbir Singh Seechewal.
The development is significant for Punjab’s ruling party, especially with the state assembly elections 10 months away. All the six outgoing MPs are still holding their Rajya Sabha terms which will continue till April 2028.
Meanwhile, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal hit out at the BJP, alleging that the ruling party at the Center has “pushed” the people of Punjab. He took to X and said, “BJP ne fir se Punjabio ke sath kia dhakka” (BJP has pushed Punjab again).
Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann has described these seven MPs joining the BJP as “traitors”.
“The seven MPs who are joining BJP are not representing Punjab, they are traitors,” he further said, adding that they would not get benefits even in BJP, he said.
