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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Raghav Chadha on Monday announced his exit from the political party he co-founded, alleging a "toxic work environment" and claiming that internal functioning had deteriorated significantly in recent years.
In a self-made video statement, Chadha said he entered politics after leaving a promising career as a Chartered Accountant and dedicated nearly 15 years of his "prime youth" to building the party. "I didn't come into politics to build a career. I became a founding member of a political party. I gave fifteen years of my prime youth to this party," Chadha said in the video. However, he alleged that the organisation had changed over time, claiming that it was no longer functioning in its original spirit. "But today, this party is no longer the same old party. Today, there's a toxic work environment in this party. You are stopped from working. You are stopped from speaking in Parliament," he said. Chadha further alleged that the party had fallen under the control of "a few corrupt and compromised people" who were working for personal interests rather than public service. "For the last few years, I felt that perhaps I'm the right man but in the wrong party," he added, outlining three options he had considered before deciding to leave. He said the options included quitting politics altogether, continuing within the party to attempt internal reform, or moving to another political platform to pursue "constructive politics." Chadha also claimed that a total of seven Members of Parliament had decided to sever ties with the party, suggesting a wider dissatisfaction within the organisation. "One man can be wrong, two people can be wrong, but seven people cannot be wrong," he said in the video. He further assured that despite his exit, he would continue to raise public issues with "greater energy and commitment" in the future. Earlier in the day, BJP s strength in Rajya Sabha has increased to 113 after Chairman CP Radhakrishnan approved the merger of Raghav Chadha and six other MPs who quit the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Losing two-thirds of its MPs has been a big setback for the AAP, which is now reduced to a strength of three members in the Upper House of Parliament. The trio of MPs--Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal--parted ways with the AAP on Friday and subsequently joined the BJP in the presence of party leadership. Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta, Vikramjit Singh Sahney and Swati Maliwal had also switched to the BJP. Meanwhile, AAP MP Sanjay Singh had officially petitioned the Rajya Sabha Chairman CP Radhakrishnan to disqualify seven MPs. The petition challenged the "purported merger" under paragraph 4 of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution and sought the disqualification of the MPs under its paragraph 2(1)(a). Paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule deals with disqualification on the ground of defection. Sub-paragraph (1) provides that, subject to the provisions of paragraphs 4 and 5, a member of a House belonging to any political party shall be disqualified from being a member of the House. Clause (a) of this sub-paragraph further specifies that such disqualification occurs if the member has voluntarily given up membership of that political party. Singh challenged the validity of the merger, citing the requirements in the Constitution. However, as per the Tenth Schedule, a disqualification of MPs cannot take place in case an original political party merges with another political party, given that the merger includes two-thirds of the members. The seven AAP MPs fulfilled this condition as they shook hands with the BJP. The move has triggered furious reactions from AAP leaders, who termed it a s "betrayal" while drawing a warm welcome from the BJP. (ANI)
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