'BJP Ne Punjabiyon Ke Sath Kiya Dhakka': Kejriwal's First Reaction After Raghav Chadha, 6 Other RS MPs Quit AAP, Announce Merger With Saffron Party

Arvind Kejriwal, national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party, reacted on X after the party faced a major jolt when Raghav Chadha and six other Rajya Sabha members parted ways with the party and announced their merger with the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday.

In a brief post on X, Kejriwal wrote, "BJP ne phir se Punjabiyon ke sath kiya dhakka." (“The BJP has once again pushed Punjabis.”)

Kejriwal's post came shortly after AAP MP Sanjay Singh held a press conference and slammed Raghav Chadha and the other MPs for breaking the party, calling them traitors.

Sanjay Singh said the AAP had given significant opportunities to leaders like Raghav Chadha, questioning what the people of Punjab had not given him after electing him as an MLA and later sending him to the Rajya Sabha with their support. He added that leaders such as Sandeep Pathak and Rajendra Gupta were also elevated to the Rajya Sabha with the trust, love, and blessings of the people and were entrusted with major responsibilities by the party.

Earlier in the day, addressing a press conference with Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal, AAP MP Raghav Chadha said, “We have decided that we, the two-thirds members belonging to the AAP in Rajya Sabha, will exercise the provisions of the Constitution of India and merge ourselves with the BJP.”

Meanwhile, the AAP is reportedly planning to move a plea to disqualify these seven MPs under the anti-defection law.