New Delhi: A political controversy erupted on Friday after several Rajya Sabha MPs associated with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) announced their decision to merge with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), triggering sharp reactions from senior party leaders Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia.

The development came after seven AAP MPs- including Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Swati Maliwal, Harbhajan Singh, Vikramjit Singh Sahney and Rajinder Gupta, said they had exercised constitutional provisions to merge with the BJP, claiming that two-thirds of the party’s Rajya Sabha strength had agreed to the move. The MPs cited internal differences and said they intended to pursue what they described as “positive politics” going forward.

AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal was among the first to respond, criticising the BJP in a brief post on social media. Without directly naming the MPs, he alleged that the ruling party at the Centre had “once again given Punjabis a shove,” in a pointed attack on the development.

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Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia followed with a strongly worded response, calling the MPs who switched sides “traitors.” In a post on X, Sisodia alleged that while AAP workers were facing pressure and threats on the ground, certain leaders had chosen to align with the BJP out of “fear and greed.” He said the move amounted to betrayal of the party workers’ “blood and sweat,” particularly in Punjab.

Sisodia further claimed that party workers were engaged in difficult ground-level efforts to strengthen AAP’s ideology in Gujarat, while some leaders had “struck a deal” for personal gain. He added that Punjab would not forgive those who, in his words, had betrayed the people’s trust.

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Other senior AAP leaders also criticised the development. Sanjay Singh rejected the MPs’ justification for the split, accusing them of abandoning the party during a politically sensitive period. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said the MPs no longer represented Punjab’s interests and described them as having betrayed the state.

The BJP has not yet issued an official response to the allegations made by AAP leaders.