Raghav Chadha to join BJP with 6 other AAP MPs
What's the story
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha has announced that he will be joining the BJP along with Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal, whom the AAP had appointed as Rajya Sabha deputy leader after removing Chadha. Addressing a press conference, Chadha said, "We, the 2/3rd members belonging to the AAP in Rajya Sabha, exercise the provisions of the Constitution...and merge ourselves with the BJP."
AAP
'AAP does not work in the interest of the nation'
At the conference with Pathak and Mittal, Chadha attacked the AAP, claiming that the party that he had "nurtured with my blood and sweat and gave 15 years of my youth to has deviated from its principles, values and core morals." "Now this party does not work in the interest of the nation but for its personal benefits," he said.
Attack
'2/3rd MPs of AAP in Rajya Sabha with us'
He further said that for the past few years, he felt like he was the right man in the wrong party. "So...we announce that I am distancing myself from the AAP and getting close to public," he said in a shocking announcement. He claimed that other AAP leaders also share his frustration and that "more than 2/3 of them are with us in this."
MPs
Other leaders also joining
"There are 10 AAP MPs in the Rajya Sabha, more than 2/3rd of them are with us in this. They have signed and this morning we submitted the signed letter and documents to the Rajya Sabha Chairman...3 of them are here before you," he said. "Besides us, there are Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta, Vikram Sahney and Swati Maliwal," he said.
Options
'Real reason' he has distanced himself from AAP
Elaborating on the "real reason" he has distanced himself from the AAP, he said he did not want to be a part of their crimes. "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, he said they decided to leave.
Rift
Chadha was removed as RS deputy leader
The very shocking move comes amid a political rift between Chadha and the AAP after it removed him as the party's deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha. The AAP had slammed Chadha for not bringing up important issues in Parliament and instead focusing on things like making samosas cheaper in the airport canteen. "You've grown afraid....You hesitate to speak against Modi," the party said.