The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has formally appealed to the Rajya Sabha Chairman to disqualify its members who recently defected to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing them of betraying the party and its mandate.
The move follows reports that several AAP Rajya Sabha MPs, including prominent leader Raghav Chadha, have resigned from the party and joined the BJP. AAP leaders have denounced the defections as acts of political backstabbing, claiming the MPs violated public trust by switching allegiance shortly after being elected on the party’s platform.
In its submission to the Rajya Sabha Chairman, AAP argued that the defectors no longer possess the moral or political qualification to continue serving as members of Parliament, given their departure from the party under whose banner they were elected.
The party has also organized protests outside the residences of the defecting MPs, particularly in Punjab, where demonstrators accused them of abandoning their constituents and aligning with a rival political force.
AAP leaders questioned whether the timing of the defections—coinciding with Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s recent visit to Punjab—was coincidental or part of a coordinated strategy to weaken the opposition in the state.
The developments have intensified political tensions in Punjab, with AAP asserting that the defections undermine democratic accountability and constitute a breach of ethical conduct expected from elected representatives.
