The BRICS TimesRajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan formally accepted the merger of seven breakaway AAP MPs led by Raghav Chadha into the BJP on Monday. This major political realignment pushes BJP’s Upper House strength to 113. It reduces Arvind Kejriwal’s party to just three members in the Rajya Sabha.
Seven AAP MPs formally inducted into BJP as Rajya Sabha Chairman gives nod
It was a dramatic Monday morning in Parliament’s Upper House. Rajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan officially gave his stamp of approval to the merger of seven former Aam Aadmi Party MPs with the Bharatiya Janata Party. The move long anticipated since Friday’s shocking walkout now reshapes the political balance in the Rajya Sabha in a big way.
The seven MPs who crossed over are Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, Harbhajan Singh, Vikramjit Singh Sahney, Swati Maliwal and Rajinder Gupta. Their names now officially appear under the BJP’s list of members on the Rajya Sabha’s website.
BJP’s Rajya Sabha tally jumps to 113
With this addition, the BJP’s strength in the Upper House climbs to 113 a significant boost for the ruling NDA. Meanwhile, Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP once a growing force in the Rajya Sabha has now been whittled down to just three members in total.
The Punjab representation tells an even sharper story. Of the seven MPs who represented Punjab in the Rajya Sabha, six now sit with the BJP. Only one Balbir Singh Seechewal remains in the AAP corner. In Delhi too, the math has shifted. Sanjay Singh and N.D. Gupta hold the AAP fort, while Swati Maliwal is now firmly in the BJP camp.
How the merger unfolded from Friday’s walkout to Monday’s recognition
The trigger came last Friday, when all seven MPs quit AAP in a coordinated move. They alleged that the Kejriwal-led party had abandoned the principles, values and core morals it was once built on. Raghav Chadha personally handed over the signed merger document to the Chairman. He cited a constitutional provision that more than two-thirds of a party’s MPs in a House can merge with another party. The AAP had ten Rajya Sabha MPs in total, making seven the threshold required to claim a valid merger.
On Friday itself, the group petitioned the Chairman to officially recognise them as BJP MPs. That petition got accepted on Monday.
Minister Rijiju cheers the move, takes a swipe at INDIA bloc
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju took to X to welcome the seven MPs warmly into the NDA fold. His post read: “Honb’le Chairman Rajya Sabha Shri C.P. Radhakrishnan Ji has accepted the merger of 7 AAP MPs with BJP. Now, Raghav Chadha ji, Sandeep Pathak ji, Ashok Mittal ji, Harbhajan Singh ji, Swati Maliwal ji, Rajinder Gupta ji and Vikramjit Singh Sahney ji are Members of BJP Parliamentary Party.”
He didn’t stop there. Rijiju added: “For a long time I’ve observed that these 7 Honb’le MPs have not resorted to abusive languages and never created any indiscipline and Un-Parliamentary conducts.”
He wrapped up with a pointed parting shot “Welcome to nation building NDA under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji and good bye to Tukde-Tukde INDI Alliance.”
AAP calls it unconstitutional, seeks disqualification
The AAP did not take this lying down. The party had, on Sunday, declared the merger “unconstitutional.” It moved a petition before the Rajya Sabha Chairman demanding the termination of membership of the seven MPs. Senior AAP MP Sanjay Singh went further he alleged that the move amounted to defection and violated the anti-defection law. Singh had personally submitted a disqualification petition to Chairman Radhakrishnan.
However, with the Chairman accepting the merger, the AAP’s petition now hangs in the balance.
Raghav Chadha breaks silence calls AAP a “toxic” workplace
Not one to stay quiet, Raghav Chadha released a video on Monday his first extended public statement since the dramatic walkout. He said he had received countless messages over the past three days some congratulating him, others questioning his move.
Chadha defended his decision sharply. He said the work environment inside AAP had turned “toxic,” with leaders being actively stopped from working. He made his case with a pointed line “one or two persons can be wrong, but not all seven.”
He reminded viewers that he had given up a flourishing career as a chartered accountant to enter politics. He said he joined AAP as a founding member with genuine conviction. That conviction, he now says, found no room left in the party.
