Raghav Chadha alleges 'misuse of state machinery', Bhagwant Mann says 'merger unconstitutional'; meet President to discuss 'merger' aftermath

New Delhi [India], May 5 : The conflict between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its seven Rajya Sabha MPs who merged with the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) continues as Raghav Chadha met President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday to discuss the merger's aftermath.

Punjab Chief Minister Mann also met with President Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan to raise the issue of the recent merger of the seven AAP MPs into the BJP.

Chadha had requested to apprise her of the alleged misuse of the Punjab Government's state machinery for political vendetta and targeted action against the MPs, according to sources. Upon his request, President Murmu gave him time for a meeting on May 5.

This comes after the trio of MPs - Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak and Ashok Mittal - parted ways with the AAP last month 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 later.

Meanwhile, the Punjab CM urged President Murmu during their meeting to cancel the membership of seven Rajya Sabha MPs who recently defected from AAP.

He described the meeting as a vital step in safeguarding the "mandate of the people of Punjab and the democratic values", which comes after the CM sought a formal audience with the President.

Taking it to X, Mann said that he strongly raised his voice against the "murder of democracy" in the country, targeting the BJP, using government bodies such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as a "washing machine" to clean tainted leaders.

"Today, in Delhi, before the President, we have strongly raised our voice against the 'murder of democracy' taking place in the country. Breaking parties through unconstitutional means and misusing central agencies like the ED-CBI to clean tainted leaders in the BJP's 'washing machine' is a direct assault on our democratic framework," he wrote.

Taking a jibe at the BJP, Mann said that the "Operation Lotus" will never be successful in Punjab, underlining that the Punjabis do not accept betrayal.

"We have made it clear that the cheap tactics of 'Operation Lotus' in Punjab will never succeed. Our MLAs are the voice of millions of Punjabis, and Punjabis never tolerate betrayal," he said, adding, "As your 'public servant,' I assure every Punjabi that we will fight to the last breath to protect the people's mandate and constitutional values."

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ਅੱਜ ਦਿੱਲੀ ਵਿਖੇ ਮਾਨਯੋਗ ਰਾਸ਼ਟਰਪਤੀ ਜੀ ਦੇ ਸਾਹਮਣੇ ਅਸੀਂ ਦੇਸ਼ ਵਿੱਚ ਹੋ ਰਹੇ 'ਲੋਕਤੰਤਰ ਦੇ ਕਤਲ' ਖ਼ਿਲਾਫ਼ ਮਜ਼ਬੂਤੀ ਨਾਲ ਆਵਾਜ਼ ਬੁਲੰਦ ਕੀਤੀ ਹੈ। ਗੈਰ-ਸੰਵਿਧਾਨਕ ਤਰੀਕੇ ਨਾਲ ਪਾਰਟੀਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਤੋੜਨਾ ਅਤੇ ED-CBI ਵਰਗੀਆਂ ਕੇਂਦਰੀ ਏਜੰਸੀਆਂ ਦੀ ਦੁਰਵਰਤੋਂ ਕਰਕੇ ਦਾਗੀ ਨੇਤਾਵਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਭਾਜਪਾ ਦੀ 'ਵਾਸ਼ਿੰਗ ਮਸ਼ੀਨ' ਵਿੱਚ ਸਾਫ਼ ਕਰਨਾ ਸਾਡੇ… pic.twitter.com/9pBxuaoExl— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) May 5, 2026

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mann said that the merger is "unconstitutional" and a blatant violation of democratic principles.

"The way the Constitution was violated when seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs claimed they were a different party and merged with the BJP is unconstitutional. We demanded the cancellation of the membership of the AAP Rajya Sabha MPs who joined the BJP. If the Central government misuses its power in Punjab, we will take action," he remarked.

He also questioned the legality of such actions and suggested that those dissatisfied with the AAP should resign and contest elections independently.

"7 out of 10 of our MPs cannot just get up and say they are going to merge with another party. There is no such law, and they cannot do whatever comes to mind. The country runs according to the law...If they disliked the Aam Aadmi Party so much, they should have resigned. After resigning, they could have been elected from anywhere. I told the President how democracy is currently being made a mockery of in Punjab. BJP has just two MLAs, but it has suddenly gained six Rajya Sabha MPs.Their membership should be revoked. If there is no provision for recall, then bring an amendment," Mann told reporters.

Meanwhile, in a press conference shortly after calling on President Murmu, Raghav Chadha stated that the President has assured security to all seven former AAP MPs and cautioned the Punjab government officers, as the current state government has only a few years left in power.

"We made the President aware of the misuse and abuse of the Punjab state machinery by the Aam Aadmi Party. The President has assured us of our protection and of protecting the Constitution. I want to tell the Punjab govt officers to beware, as the AAP govt has only a few months remaining now. Today, we told the President about the way the Punjab government has been using state machinery for dangerous vendetta politics against the MPs who left AAP to join the BJP," he said.

In an X post, Chadha accused the Punjab government of misusing state machinery to target the former AAP MPs, adding that the party, which "once cried vendetta, is now practising its most toxic form."

"Honoured to meet the Hon'ble President of India this morning, along with three fellow MPs. We conveyed how the AAP's Punjab government is misusing State machinery to target us for exercising our constitutional rights, after two-thirds of MPs chose to merge with the BJP. The party that once cried vendetta is now practising its most toxic form. We take strength from the President's assurance that constitutional rights and democratic choices must be respected. AAP today behaves less like a political party and more like an obsessed, jilted ex bitter, vindictive, and unable to move on," he wrote.

Honoured to meet the Hon’ble President of India this morning, along with three fellow MPs.

We conveyed how the AAP’s Punjab government is misusing State machinery to target us for exercising our constitutional rights, after two-thirds of MPs chose to merge with the BJP. The… pic.twitter.com/Zpbx6pV0wN

— Raghav Chadha (@raghav_chadha) May 5, 2026

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This face-off has heightened political tensions between the AAP and its former MPs, with one side accusing the other of committing defection, which is a constitutional offence. The seven MPs have levelled charges against the Punjab government of misusing state machinery.

Both sides remain enriched in their positions, with AAP navigating through the 'political betrayal' and the defected MPs advocating their right to make democratic choices.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor

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