The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has strongly condemned the decision of Raghav Chadha and six other Rajya Sabha MPs to quit the party and join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday. Accusing the BJP of launching 'Operation Lotus', AAP MP Sanjay Singh stated that this was a targeted attempt to 'obstruct the good work of the Bhagwant Mann government in Punjab'.
Sanjay Singh's Statement
'The Bharatiya Janata Party, under Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, has launched 'Operation Lotus', which is being described as a game of cheap politics and an attempt to obstruct the good work of the Bhagwant Mann government in Punjab on a large scale,' he said. 'The BJP has done the work of obstructing the good works done by Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government... 7 AAP Rajya Sabha MPs are joining the BJP, the people of Punjab should remember these 7 names. The people of Punjab will never forget them,' he added.
Raghav Chadha's Defense
Earlier, Chadha said that he was quitting AAP and set to 'merge' with the BJP, along with Rajya Sabha MPs like Swati Maliwal, Harbhajan Singh, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Rajinder Gupta and Vikram Sahni. 'I am telling you the real reason as to why I distanced myself from party activities. I did not want to be a part of their crimes. I was not eligible for their friendship because I was not a part of their crime. We had just two options - either quit politics and give up our public work in the last 15-16 years or we do positive politics with our energy and experience. So, we have decided that we, the 2/3rd members belonging to the AAP in Rajya Sabha, exercise the provisions of the Constitution of India and merge ourselves with the BJP,' said Raghav Chadha addressing a press conference.
