Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh stated that the membership of seven MPs who recently left the party to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will be revoked under constitutional provisions. Singh mentioned that AAP has filed a petition under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, seeking an early hearing from Rajya Sabha Chairman C. P. Radhakrishnan for a fair decision.
The move follows the resignation of Rajya Sabha member Raghav Chadha from AAP, along with six other MPs, including Swati Maliwal, Harbhajan Singh, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Rajinder Gupta, and Vikram Sahni, who are expected to shift to the BJP. Chadha indicated that this group, constituting a significant faction of AAP’s Rajya Sabha members, will formally merge with the BJP soon.
Singh, during a press conference, emphasized that constitutional experts like Kapil Sibal and P. D. T. Achary have affirmed that the seven members opting to leave AAP and join BJP will face membership termination. He stressed the submission of a petition under the Tenth Schedule of the Indian Constitution to completely cancel their memberships and urged prompt action and a fair decision from the Chairman.
Terming the action as necessary, Singh accused the MPs of defecting under pressure after being elected on an AAP mandate. He criticized the BJP for allegedly including them in their party, labeling it as a betrayal of democracy, Punjab’s people, and the country’s Constitution. Singh argued that elected representatives should resign before switching parties, expressing hope for a swift decision from the Chairman to cancel their memberships.
