Raghav Chadha, along with seven MPs from Punjab, quit the Aam Aadmi Party to join the BJP. The development comes days after his public fallout with the Aam Aadmi Party over his removal as deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha.

“We have decided that we, the 2/3rd members belonging to the AAP in Rajya Sabha, exercise the provisions of the Constitution of India and merge ourselves with the BJP,” Chadha said at an explosive press conference in Delhi.

Explaining his decision, Chadha alleged that AAP has deviated from its principles, values and core morals.

“The AAP, which I nurtured with my blood and sweat, and gave 15 years of my youth to, has deviated from its principles, values and core morals. Now this party does not work in the interest of the nation but for its personal benefits…For the past few years, I could feel that I am the right man in the wrong party. So, today, we announce that I am distancing myself from the AAP and getting close to public,” Chadha said.

He was joined by AAP MPs Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal.

Chadha added that more than 2/3rd of the ten AAP MP “are with us”. These include disgruntled party leaders like Swati Maliwal and Harbhajan Singh, he said.

“They have signed and this morning we submitted the signed letter and documents to the Rajya Sabha Chairman…3 of them are here before you. Besides us, there are Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta, Vikram Sahney and Swati Maliwal.”

AAP hit back, accusing the BJP of running ‘Operation Lotus’ against the party.

Addressing a hurriedly called press conference, AAP leader Sanjay Singh said that he was “deeply hurt and saddened” by BJP’s action against the party.

“I want to tell Modi ji and Amit Shah that this dirty game you have played with the Aam Aadmi Party and with the people of Punjab, and the attempts you have made to stop the Bhagwant Mann government and obstruct its work, for this betrayal and deceit, the people of Punjab will never forgive you. Everyone is watching what is happening and how things are being done. Today, my heart is deeply hurt and saddened because a good government is functioning in Punjab. Bhagwant Mann is doing good work for the people there in areas like education, health, electricity, water, and providing government jobs, and yet this ‘Operation Lotus’ is being played against that government,” he said.

The internal ruptures in AAP’s leadership came to the fore after Chadha was removed as deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha.

AAP had then justified its decision, claiming that Chadha had failed to raise key issues concerning Punjab in Parliament.

In a joint statement, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, state AAP president Aman Arora and party leader Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal said that Chadha’s was expected to strongly represent the state’s concerns at the national level, but did not raise “even a single sensitive issue” related to it.

Key financial concerns, financial setbacks due to changes in GST compensation, issues related to funding under the National Health Mission were not brought up by Chadha in Parliament, the minister said.

Raghav Chadha’s AAP journey

Raghav Chadha has been associated with the Aam Aadmi Party since its inception.

He worked closely with Arvind Kejriwal on the Delhi Lokpal Bill in 2012, and rose quickly within the party, becoming its national spokesperson. After AAP’s 2015 Delhi poll win, he was made a treasurer.

He contested the 2019 Lok Sabha polls from South Delhi but lost to Ramesh Bidhuri. A year later, he contested Delhi Assembly elections from Rajendra Nagar and won the seat. He later served as vice-chairman of the Delhi Jal Board.

In 2022, Chadha became the youngest Rajya Sabha MP at 33 and has since played a key role in AAP’s parliamentary and organisational affairs.