New Delhi: In a major blow to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), eight of its legislators, who had recently resigned, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturda, just days ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections. The leaders who switched sides include Vandana Gaur (Palam), Rohit Mehraulia (Trilokpuri), Girish Soni (Madipur), Madan Lal (Kasturba Nagar), Rajesh Rishi (Uttam Nagar), BS Joon (Bijwasan), Naresh Yadav (Mehrauli) and Pawan Sharma (Adarsh Nagar).
Of the eight MLAs, seven were denied tickets by AAP for the upcoming elections, leading to discontent within the party ranks. Meanwhile, Mehrauli MLA Naresh Yadav was initially fielded as a candidate but later withdrew after allegations against him in Punjab’s Quran sacrilege case were proven. Subsequently, AAP replaced him with Mahender Chaudhary, prompting Yadav to resign on Friday. After their exit from AAP, the MLAs also submitted their resignations to the Assembly Speaker, formally relinquishing their seats.
BJP hails defections as historic
Their induction into the BJP took place in the presence of the party’s national vice-president, Baijayant Panda, and Delhi unit chief, Virendraa Sachdeva. Welcoming them, Panda described it as a “historic” moment, remarking that they had liberated themselves from “AAPda” (a play on words implying “disaster”). He further asserted that Delhi would also rid itself of AAP after the February 5 elections.
Palam MLA Bhawna Gaur cited a loss of faith in AAP and its leadership as the reason for her resignation. Kasturba Nagar MLA Madan Lal echoed similar sentiments. Both wrote separate resignation letters to AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, formally announcing their departure.
AAP eyes third term
AAP has announced its candidates for the elections, including Mukesh Goel (Adarsh Nagar), Pravin Kumar (Janakpuri), Surendra Bhardwaj (Bijwasan), Joginder Solanki (Palam), Ramesh Pehlwan (Kasturba Nagar), and Anjana Parcha (Trilokpuri). AAP is seeking a third consecutive term in power but faces stiff competition from the BJP, which has been out of power in Delhi for 27 years. The Congress is also in the fray. The results of the election will be declared on February 8.
