Rajya Sabha Chairman CP Radhakrishnan has formally approved the merger of six rebel Aam Aadmi Party MPs including Raghav Chadha with the BJP, informed Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju on Monday. With this, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s tally in the upper house has jumped to 113. Seven rebel AAP Rajya MPs – Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, Vikramjit Singh Sahney, Harbhajan Singh, Swati Maliwal and Rajinder Gupta – are now part of the BJP in the upper house.
Sharing the information on social media site X, Rijijy lauded the MPs for not resorting to abusive languages and never creating any indiscipline and un-Parliamentary conducts. He said that the MPs by said good bye to ‘Tukde-Tukde’ INDI Alliance.
“Honb’le Chairman Rajya Sabha Shri C.P. Radhakrishnan Ji has accepted the merger of 7 AAP MPs with BJP. Now, Raghav Chadha ji, Sandeep Pathak ji, Ashok Mittal ji, Harbhajan Singh ji, Swati Maliwal ji, Rajinder Gupta ji & Vikramjit Singh Sahney ji are Members of BJP Parliamentary Party. For a long time I’ve observed that these 7 Honb’le MPs have not resorted to abusive languages and never created any indiscipline and Un-Parliamentary conducts. Welcome to nation building NDA under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji and good bye to Tukde-Tukde INDI Alliance,” said Rijiju.
Raghav Chadha’s ‘toxic work culture’ jibe
Days after quitting the AAP, Rajya Sabha member Raghav Chadha took to social media and claimed that he was forced to leave the party due to ‘toxic’ work culture. Chadha asserted that his decision to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would help him implement the causes he supports more effectively.
The development follows a major political shift last week when Chadha announced his resignation from AAP along with six other Rajya Sabha MPs — Swati Maliwal, Harbhajan Singh, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Rajinder Gupta and Vikram Sahni — all of whom have announced their decision to merge with the BJP.
In a self-made video, Chadha said he entered politics after leaving a promising career as a Chartered Accountant and dedicated nearly 15 years of his “prime youth” to building the party. Chadha further alleged that the party had fallen under the control of “a few corrupt and compromised people” who were working for personal interests rather than public service. “For the last few years, I felt that perhaps I’m the right man but in the wrong party,” he added, outlining three options he had considered before deciding to leave.
