In a dramatic political development, Raghav Chadha declared that he is switching allegiance to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), taking with him a significant section of the Aam Aadmi Party’s Rajya Sabha members. The move is widely seen as a major setback for AAP chief and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Addressing reporters, Chadha said that nearly two-thirds of AAP’s 10 MPs in the Rajya Sabha have decided to merge with the BJP and that the necessary communication has been sent to the Chairman of the Upper House. Under India’s anti-defection provisions, such a merger is protected if supported by at least two-thirds of a party’s legislators.

Chadha, who was among AAP’s founding members, accused the party of abandoning its original anti-corruption plank and straying from what he described as principled politics. Calling himself “a right man in the wrong party,” he said he chose to continue in public life rather than quit politics altogether.

Among those he named as joining the BJP were Harbhajan Singh, Swati Maliwal, Rajinder Gupta, Vikram Sahney, Ashok Mittal and Sandeep Pathak. Following the announcement, only three AAP MPs — Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal, Sanjay Singh and N.D. Gupta — remain in the Upper House.

AAP swiftly hit back, terming the move a betrayal and announcing plans to seek disqualification of the departing MPs. Sanjay Singh said the party would write to the Rajya Sabha Chairman, arguing that joining another party amounts to voluntarily giving up membership under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution.

Kejriwal also criticised the development, accusing the BJP of undermining Punjab’s mandate. Meanwhile, Chadha suggested that the AAP of today no longer reflects the values on which it was founded in 2012. He maintained that the decision was collective and aimed at pursuing what he described as cleaner governance.

The switch follows weeks of visible friction between Chadha and the party leadership, including his removal as AAP’s deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha and disputes over his role in parliamentary strategy.

The political realignment is expected to reshape equations in the Upper House and intensify tensions between the BJP and AAP in the coming weeks.