UP Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya welcomed the joining of AAP’s Rajya Sabha MPs into the BJP, saying the party is nearing its end. The move, which saw two-thirds of AAP’s Upper House members merge with the BJP, was led by Raghav Chadha. (ANI)
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Saturday welcomed the joining of two-thirds of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MPs into the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), calling it a decisive political development.
Reacting to the move, Maurya said on Saturday that the BJP is open to leaders joining its fold and asserted that the AAP had emerged from an anti-corruption movement. “We welcome all these MPs. AAP was born out of a movement,” Maurya said. He further asserted that the party is nearing its end, adding, “The time has come for AAP to end.”
Leaders ‘Suffocated’ in Other Parties: BJP
Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Bihar President Sanjay Saraogi on Friday also took a sharp dig at the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) after two to three of its Rajya Sabha MPs joined the BJP, saying that leaders in other parties feel “suffocated” and are increasingly drawn towards the BJP’s policies and ideology.
Speaking to ANI, Saraogi said that more leaders from other parties are likely to join the BJP in the coming times, citing ideological alignment and organisational appeal. “Good people in other parties are feeling suffocated in their own parties, and they all believe in the policies of the BJP…that is why people from other parties are joining the BJP. In the times to come, more people will be seen doing so,” Saraogi said.
Raghav Chadha Leads Split
The comments came after the Aam Aadmi Party suffered a major setback after its Rajya Sabha MPs, including Raghav Chadha, who was removed as the party’s deputy leader in Rajya Sabha earlier, joined the rival Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday.
This came after the Aam Aadmi Party suffered a major setback after its Rajya Sabha MPs, including Raghav Chadha, who was removed as the party’s deputy leader in Rajya Sabha earlier, joined the BJP on Friday.
While addressing a presser in the national capital on Friday, Chadha formalised a split that had been building for weeks, announcing that two-thirds of the party’s Upper House members would merge with the BJP. The move triggered furious reactions from AAP leaders while drawing a warm welcome from the BJP.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)