NEW DELHI, APRIL 3 — The Aam Aadmi Party declared Friday that the removal of Raghav Chadha from his position as deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha was a necessary disciplinary step, asserting that the MP has consistently avoided questioning the central government on critical public interest matters.
Party leadership stated that Chadha repeatedly deviated from the official party line, specifically noting his refusal to sign an impeachment motion against the Chief Election Commissioner and his silence during parliamentary debates regarding the LPG crisis. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann affirmed that such leadership changes are common within political organizations to maintain collective discipline.
“If any individual does not support these collective decisions and goes against the party line, then it is against the party whip,” Mann stated. He maintained that action is inevitable for anyone who disregards the party’s unified stance in Parliament.
Senior leader Sanjay Singh declared that the party’s culture, established by Arvind Kejriwal, is built on fearless engagement, a trait he claimed Chadha has failed to demonstrate recently. Singh noted that Chadha remained silent while party workers faced police action in Gujarat and while Punjab’s rights were being challenged by the Centre.
“On issues related to public interest, the country, the AAP, and party workers, Raghav Chadha remains silent,” Singh affirmed. He further questioned why the MP did not participate in opposition walkouts on several key issues.
Atishi, the Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, asserted that Chadha’s absence during the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal was particularly telling. She stated that while workers were being detained on the streets of Delhi, Chadha was in London.
“Today even I wonder, when Arvind Kejriwal was arrested, was he afraid of the BJP? Did he run away to London out of fear?” Atishi asked. She declared that the party would continue to prioritize the Constitution over personal safety, regardless of the fear of imprisonment.
