New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has moved to remove Raghav Chadha from the post of deputy leader of the party in the Upper House.
What did the AAP letter say
The AAP has written to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat seeking the removal of Raghav Chadha from the post of Deputy Leader of the party in the Upper House, news agency PTI reported, citing sources. It has said that Chadha should not be allotted speaking time from AAP’s quota, suggesting a marked shift in the party’s parliamentary strategy.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led party has also proposed appointment of Ashok Mittal as AAP’s Deputy Leader in the Upper House, and urged the secretariat to formalise the appointment as soon as possible.
The party currently has 10 members in the Upper House, including seven from Punjab and three from Delhi. Last week, the AAP removed Chadha from its list of star campaigners for the upcoming Assembly polls.
Chadha’s long association with AAP
Chadha is a Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab and has a long association with the Aam Aadmi Party. He has been with the party since its inception. In 2012, he embarked on his political career working with Kejriwal on the Delhi Lokpal Bill.
He quickly rose through the party ranks, becoming a national spokesperson. Later, he became AAP’s youngest treasurer after the party’s 2015 Delhi poll victory.
In 2019, he contested the Lok Sabha elections from South Delhi but was defeated by Ramesh Bidhuri. He won the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections from Rajendra Nagar. He later served as vice-chairman of the Delhi Jal Board.
In 2022, he entered the Rajya Sabha as its youngest member at 33. Since then, he has actively been engaged in the AAP’s parliamentary strategy and organisational activities, and has worked closely with key AAP leaders like Manish Sisodia and Bhagwant Mann.
It was in 2023 that he was appointed as AAP’s leader in the Rajya Sabha, replacing Sanjay Singh.