New Delhi: Raghav Chadha and six other Rajya Sabha MPs, who recently joined Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) from Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), will meet President Droupadi Murmu on May 5 to raise concerns against AAP-led Punjab government.
The MPs will submit a complaint over the alleged misuse of state machinery in Punjab. They have termed the actions of AAP govt as political vendetta against those who joined BJP.
Punjab Police at ex-AAP MP’s residence
The development came a day after a team of Punjab Police reportedly landed at Sandeep Pathak‘s residence to arrest him after two FIR’s were lodged against him in the state. Pathak was one of the seven MPs who defected from AAP to BJP.
In a major setback to AAP, seven of its 10 Rajya Sabha MPs joined BJP last month. The seven MPs include Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak, Harbhajan Singh, Swati Maliwal, Ashok Kumar Mittal, Vikramjit Singh Sahney and Rajendra Gupta. The Chairman of the Rajya Sabha has already approved their merger with the BJP as they represent more than two-thirds of the AAP’s strength in the Upper House.
Punjab CM to meet prez too
Led by Chadha, the MPs invoked provisions under the anti-defection law to retain their membership. Under Paragraph 4 of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, if at least two-thirds of the members of a legislature party agree to merge with another party, they are protected from disqualification.
Meanwhile, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann is also scheduled to meet the President later the same day. He is expected to raise concerns over the validity of the merger process and may seek action regarding the MPs’ status.