AAP accuses BJP of kidnapping Councillor; BJP calls allegations 'baseless'

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) claimed on Sunday that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had "kidnapped" its councillor, Ram Chander, from Ward No 28. The BJP has denied these allegations.

AAP leaders alleged that Ram Chander was kidnapped and taken to the BJP headquarters, where he was reportedly threatened with false cases by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Ram Chander, who later returned home, confirmed these claims in a video message shared by AAP.

Chander, who had switched from AAP to BJP with four other councillors last Sunday, said he changed his mind after a dream about Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and decided to return to AAP. He claimed that after his return, BJP members targeted him.

In the video message, Chander said, "They threatened me, saying I would be framed by ED and CBI. My son, Akash, called the police helpline while our senior party leaders contacted the police commissioner. When the BJP learned about it, they sent me back home."

He added, "I want to tell BJP, I am not scared of ED and CBI. I have done nothing wrong. I am a soldier of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal."

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh shared a video of Chander’s son, Akash, on social media. In the video, Akash said his father was taken by a group of four or five people who threatened to frame him in ED and CBI cases.

Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia and MLA Durgesh Pathak echoed the allegations. Pathak accused the BJP of undermining law and order in Delhi and warned that AAP would start a major protest if Chander was not returned within the hour.

Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor dismissed the claims as false and sensationalist. He stated on X that the BJP had no interest in Chander's party affiliation and insisted that Chander was at home, not at the BJP office.

This incident occurs just before the zonal ward committee elections for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on September 4. Both AAP and BJP are competing for councillor support, with each side accusing the other of trying to lure away their members.