New Delhi, Apr 24: In a major setback to the Aam Aadmi Party, Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha on Friday announced his decision to quit the party and join the Bharatiya Janata Party along with six other members of the Upper House.
Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Chadha said that two-thirds of AAP’s Rajya Sabha MPs had decided to merge with the BJP under constitutional provisions.
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Chadha said that party MPs Harbhajan Singh and Swati Maliwal are also quitting the AAP.
“AAP, that I nurtured with my blood and sweat and to which I gave 15 years of my youth, has completely strayed from its principles, values and core morals,” he said.
Chadha was recently removed as the deputy leader of AAP in the Rajya Sabha and was replaced by Mittal in the Upper House.
“In the Rajya Sabha, the Aam Aadmi Party has 10 MPs. More than two-thirds of them are with us in this initiative.
“They have already signed, and this morning we submitted all the required documentation, including signed letters and other formal paperwork, to the chairman of the Rajya Sabha,” Chadha told reporters.
Hitting out at Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, Chadha said that the party is no longer working for the country, but for its own benefit.
“Over the past few years, I have increasingly felt that I am the right person in the wrong party. Today, I announce my decision to move away from AAP and work more closely with the ‘janata’ (public),” he said.
Another Rajya Sabha MP, Sandeep Pathak, said that he had never thought that this situation would arise, but it has.
“For 10 years, I remained associated with this party. And today, I am parting ways with the Aam Aadmi Party,” Pathak said.
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On April 15, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids at business entities linked to AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal in Punjab as part of a FEMA probe. (PTI)
