Massive blow to Kejriwal! Raghav Chadha joins BJP, says AAP lost its way

In a massive shocker for Arvind Kejriwal, Raghav Chadha and two others have quit the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and joined the BJP. The two others who followed suit are Ashok Mittal and Sandeep Pathak. 

Ashok Mittal had previously replaced Chadha as the Rajya Sabha deputy leader.

While addressing a joint press conference with Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal, Chadha said, "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."

Raghav Chadha also claimed that Swati Maliwal, Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta and Vikramjit Singh Sahney also quit the AAP and joined the BJP.  With this, 7 out of 10 AAP Rajya Sabha MPs have merged into the BJP. 

Know about Raghav Chadha's net worth here

Chadha said that for the past few years, he felt like "the right man in the wrong party." The Rajya Sabha MP added, "So today, we announce that I am distancing myself from the AAP and getting close to public."

He alleged that the party, which was formed to eliminate corruption, has become corrupt and compromised and is in the hands of those who have gone astray from their original principles. 

Raghav Chadha added that the AAP is no longer what it used to be, adding that he stayed away from the party's activities for the past year. 

"I am telling you the real reason as to why I distanced myself from party activities. I did not want to be a part of their crime. We had just two options - either quit politics and give up our public work in the last 15-16 years or we do positive politics with our energy and experience. So, 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."

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Soon after Chadha's press conference with Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal, the AAP accused the BJP of carrying out "Operation Lotus". "The BJP used the state machinery to create fear and initiate Operation Lotus," he said.

Taking potshots at Chadha, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said, "The party made Raghav Chadha an MLA and an MP, what did the people of Punjab not give him? How much love did they show by sending him to the Rajya Sabha? And now, he has gone into the lap of the BJP."

Singh accused the ruling party of using the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI to poach 2/3rd of its MPs. He alleged that the BJP is attempting to bring down the Bhagwant Mann-led government in Punjab by using investigative agencies. 

Furthermore, he said, "But these seven individuals have stabbed the people of Punjab in the back. They have betrayed them and have worked to obstruct a government in Punjab that was serving the people."

Earlier this month, Chadha hit out at the AAP after being dropped as its deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha and proposed Punjab's Ashok Mittal as Chadha's successor. In a video message on X, Raghav Chadha said that this was the party's attempt to stop him from speaking in the Parliament. 

In a statement, the young MP said, "I am silenced, not defeated." He asked whether raising public issues in Parliament was a "crime."

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"Whenever I get a chance to speak in Parliament, I raise public issues. I raise topics that are rarely discussed in Parliament. Is it a crime to raise the issues of the people or to speak on public issues? Have I done something wrong? I am asking this question today because Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has asked the Rajya Sabha Secretariat to stop Raghav Chadha from speaking in Parliament," he said.

The AAP accused Chadha of being afraid to speak against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Centre in the Parliament and engaging in "soft PR" instead. Chadha dismissed these allegations as "lies", saying he went to the Parliament to raise people's issues and not create ruckus.