Punjab polls: Two MLAs, including former minister, quit AAP ahead of assembly polls

Representative image. | Photo credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Two legislators, one of whom was a former minister of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), resigned from the primary membership of the party on Sunday (November 1, 2026) ahead of the 2027 Punjab assembly elections.

Chetan Singh Jouramajra from Samana Assembly constituency and Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra from Sanour in Patiala district said they were quitting as the party failed to fulfill its promises made during the 2022 assembly elections.

In a press conference, the two MLAs said that various assurances given by the party regarding eradication of drugs, minimum support price for crops, better education and health in Punjab have not been fulfilled.

“In Punjab, people are constantly losing their lives to the drug menace,” said Mr Jouramajra, who was a cabinet minister and held portfolios including health.

Mr. Pathanmajra, meanwhile, faces rape charges and a police case is pending against him in Punjab. He was granted regular bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Meanwhile, AAP has attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over its attempts to field leaders who have left or been expelled by other parties. AAP Punjab chief spokesperson and MLA Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal said that while AAP has consistently put Punjab’s interests first and taken action against its own ministers and MLAs for corruption, the BJP has been trying to bring in leaders facing serious charges.

“BJP in Punjab is no longer a political party but has become a scrap and has no support base in Punjab. They are collecting rejected leaders and discarded materials from other parties, be it Congress leaders or those surviving on the grace of Shiromani Akali Dal or tarnished faces expelled from AAP,” he said.

Published – 01 Nov 2026 16:41 IST