In a significant political development, seven Rajya Sabha Members of Parliament from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), including Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal, announced their resignation from the party on Friday.
Addressing a press conference alongside Pathak and Mittal, Chadha said that more than two-thirds of AAP’s Rajya Sabha MPs have quit and will join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as a separate faction.
Chadha said that fellow MPs Harbhajan Singh and Swati Maliwal are also leaving the party.
“AAP, that I nurtured with my blood and sweat and to which I gave 15 years of my youth, has completely strayed from its principles, values and core morals,” Chadha said.
Today, exercising the provisions of the Constitution of India, more than two-thirds of the AAP MPs in the Rajya Sabha have merged with the BJP.
Seven MPs have signed the document, which was submitted to the Hon’ble Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
I, along with two other MPs,…
— Raghav Chadha (@raghav_chadha) April 24, 2026
He added that he had increasingly felt out of place within the party. “Over the past few years, I have increasingly felt that I am the right person in the wrong party. Today, I announce my decision to move away from AAP and work more closely with the ‘janata’ (public),” he said.
Formal Process Initiated in Rajya Sabha
Chadha stated that AAP currently has 10 MPs in the Rajya Sabha and that more than two-thirds are part of the breakaway group.
“They have already signed, and this morning we submitted all the required documentation, including signed letters and other formal paperwork, to the chairman of the Rajya Sabha,” he told reporters.
Chadha was recently removed as AAP’s deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha and replaced by Mittal in the Upper House.
Sandeep Pathak said the decision to leave the party was difficult.
“For 10 years, I remained associated with this party. And today, I am parting ways with the Aam Aadmi Party,” he said, adding that he had not anticipated such a situation arising.
Criticism of Party Leadership
The departing leaders also criticised the leadership of Arvind Kejriwal, alleging that the party was no longer functioning in the interest of the country.
Chadha said the AAP was now working for its own benefit rather than for the public.
The development comes days after the Enforcement Directorate conducted raids on April 15 at business entities linked to Ashok Mittal in Punjab as part of a probe under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
Political Implications
The resignation of a majority of AAP’s Rajya Sabha MPs marks a major shift in the party’s parliamentary strength in the Upper House, with the breakaway faction indicating its intent to align with the BJP.
