Chandigarh, May 2 Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak, who last week switched loyalties to the BJP along with six other Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MPs, may face arrest as two First Information Reports (FIRs) have been registered against him in Punjab, reports said on Saturday.
The FIRs in cases under non-bailable offences have been registered in two districts and police could take action at any time. Further details are awaited.
The registration of FIRs comes days after seven AAP Rajya Sabha members -- Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, cricketer Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta, Swati Maliwal and Vikramjit Sahney -- announced their decision to quit the AAP and join the BJP.
Except for Swati Maliwal, six other MPs represent Punjab in the Upper House. Since seven out of 10 AAP Rajya Sabha MPs have jumped ship together with a strength of two-thirds, none of them is expected to attract disqualification under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, commonly known as the anti-defection law.
Had Raghav Chadha or any other MP acted alone, he would have risked losing his Rajya Sabha seat under the anti-defection law. However, it does not apply when at least two-thirds of the members of a legislative party merge with another one.
After the defection of Rajya Sabha MPs, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday won the confidence motion in a special one-day Assembly session, sending a clear message that attempts to destabilise the government have failed.
Declaring the mandate in the 117-member House as a reflection of enduring public trust, Chief Minister Mann said that the AAP’s support base remains intact and will translate into an even bigger mandate in 2027.
Positioning AAP as a resilient national force unaffected by defections, the Chief Minister asserted that the party “represents people’s trust that cannot be broken”, while warning that institutions such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are being misused in ways that undermine the Constitution envisioned by Babasaheb Ambedkar.
During the proceedings, 88 AAP MLAs were present in the House, while two party MLAs were abroad and two were in jail. In addition, two MLAs were hospitalised.
The confidence motion secured unanimous support in the House, underlining the strength and unity of the AAP government.
Moving the confidence motion and addressing the Assembly, the Chief Minister said that attempts were being made to destabilise the government through misinformation, but the people of Punjab continue to stand firmly with it.
Meanwhile, CM Mann has announced that he will meet President Droupadi Murmu on May 5 to raise the issue of what he described as "illegal" and "unlawful defection" by seven Rajya Sabha MPs, including six from Punjab, while asserting that such "actions amount to a betrayal of the people's mandate".
Chief Minister Mann told the media here on April 29 that they have received confirmation from the Rashtrapati Bhawan and on May 5 "we will meet the President of India to raise the issue of illegal and unlawful defection by seven Rajya Sabha MPs". These MPs who have disrespected the mandate of the people deserve no mercy as they are the traitors of Punjab and Punjabis, he was quoted as saying.
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