The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) issued its first reaction after Raghav Chadha along with seven other Rajya Sabha MPs left the party and announced to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Addressing a press conference, AAP leader Sanjay Singh said that the people of Punjab will not forgive all seven rebel MPs. He also accused the party of conspiring to obstruct the Bhagwant Mann government's good work in Punjab. "The people of Punjab will never forgive the MPs who deserted the Aam Aadmi Party," he added. Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of launching "Operation Lotus" in Punjab after several AAP MPs announced their exit from the party.
Sanjay Singh reacts strongly to the rebellion
Speaking shortly after Raghav Chadha declared his resignation from AAP, Sanjay Singh said that the BJP's attempt to destabilise the Punjab government has now become visible. He stated that AAP MPs were lured away and asserted that Punjab’s people will hold these leaders accountable. "BJP's Operation Lotus and political game to stop Bhagwant Mann’s work has started on a large scale... The Punjab government provides good education to children and free medical treatment up to ten lakh rupees for any major illness... Such a government is being stopped and targeted by the BJP... Today, seven Rajya Sabha MPs have separated and joined BJP... The people of Punjab will not forgive these seven leaders... AAP lifted these leaders from the ground and took them to Parliament, but they have betrayed the people of Punjab," Singh added.
He also targeted the central leadership, saying, "I want to tell Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah that the people of Punjab will never forgive you for trying to stop the work of Bhagwant Mann. Operation Lotus is being played out against such a good government. Administrative machinery is being misused to run this operation."
What Raghav Chadha said at the press conference
Addressing the media along with Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal, Raghav Chadha announced his decision to leave AAP and join the BJP. "We have decided that we, the two-thirds members belonging to the AAP in Rajya Sabha, exercise the provisions of the Constitution of India and merge ourselves with the BJP," he added.
He further said, "The AAP which I nurtured with my blood and sweat and to which I gave fifteen years of my youth has now drifted away from its principles, values and basic morality. The party is no longer working for national interest but for personal profit. For the past few years, I felt like I was a right man in the wrong party. So today, we announce that I am separating myself from AAP and moving closer to the people."
A turning point in AAP's national politics
It is worth noting that the back-to-back reactions from both sides have highlighted a deepening political crisis within AAP. With multiple Rajya Sabha MPs defecting, the party faces a major organisational and ideological challenge. The coming days are expected to bring further reactions from both state and national political circles.
ALSO READ:
