Hours after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) replaced its deputy leader of the Rajya Sabha, Raghav Chadha, with Ashok Mittal, amid speculation about Chadha’s alleged differences with the party’s top leadership, Chadha took to social media and posted excerpts of his speeches in the upper house of Parliament.
The 2 minute 45 second video included excerpts of his speeches on “the tax burden on the middle class, the issue of data expiry, paternity leave should be legal, end the minimum balance penalty, food adulteration, incoming call charges, the 28 day recharge scam, Inevitable: death and tax, excess baggage charges, the paper leak scam, abuse of airport workers, the issue with health pollution, removal of GST health insurance for toll plaza loot, data privacy leak, right to free annual health checks, skyrocketing air ticket prices, digital copyright strikes, GST 2.0: Benefit missing”.
Party officials confirmed that a letter has been sent to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat seeking the removal of Raghav Chadha from the post of Deputy Leader in the Upper House. According to PTI, AAP Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha Sanjay Singh said, “The Rajya Sabha Secretariat has been informed about the party’s decision.
AAP leaders have denied reports that Chadha was not allowed to speak in the Rajya Sabha based on the quota of party MPs.
Ashok Mittal reacts
Talking to reporters, Mittal said that AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal has entrusted him with the role of deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha. He added that he will perform his duties conscientiously and effectively represent both the party’s position and national interests in the House.
AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab said, “Everyone gets time to speak in our party; it is a democratic process. Raghav Chadha will also get time to speak in Rajya Sabha in future.”
Ashok Mittal described it as routine, noting that ND Gupta had previously served as the deputy leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha before Chadha took over the role.
“Now I have been given this role. Our party wants all MPs to learn and probably in that context I have been given this role to learn processes and administrative skills in politics,” he mentioned, noting that the party is holding firm.
Chad’s silence on AAP matters and absence from party events
The move comes amid Chadha’s prolonged silence on AAP matters and his absence from several public events led by Arvind Kejriwal.
Once considered a close confidant of Kejriwal and among the youngest MPs in the country, Chadha played a prominent role in party affairs, especially in Punjab and during the AAP rule in Delhi.
Chadha was abroad on medical grounds when Kejriwal, the then Chief Minister of Delhi, was arrested in March 2024 in an excise case. He stayed away during Kejriwal’s nearly six-month imprisonment and met him only days after his release on 13 September 2024.
Recently, Chadha remained silent when Kejriwal, former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and other AAP leaders were acquitted by a Delhi court in the excise case last month. He also skipped Kejriwal’s press conference and rally at Jantar Mantar after the court order.
Party officials said Chadha is increasingly sidelined from political campaigning and organizing activities in other states, although he continues to speak out in parliament and publicly on issues such as high ticket prices and conditions for concert workers.
AAP currently has 10 members in the Rajya Sabha, including seven from Punjab and three from Delhi.
