Seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs Join BJP in Major Blow to Party Ahead of 2027 Punjab Polls
Sandeep Pathak, Raghav Chadha among defectors; CM Bhagwant Mann dismisses them as 'non-mass leaders'
Quick Look
- Seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs, including key strategists Sandeep Pathak and Raghav Chadha, have quit the party and joined BJP, dealing a symbolic blow to AAP in Punjab ahead of the 2027 assembly elections.
- Pathak was the 'silent mastermind' behind AAP's 2022 Punjab victory, while Chadha served as Punjab co-incharge.
- Their operational influence had already diminished after Manish Sisodia took over as Punjab in-charge in March 2025.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
AAP achieved a sweeping victory in Punjab in 2022, with Sandeep Pathak building a data-driven grassroots network and Raghav Chadha serving as the interface between Delhi leadership and the state unit. However, after AAP's Delhi defeat in 2025, Manish Sisodia took over Punjab operations, diminishing the influence of the departing strategists.
CHANDIGARH: The exit of seven Aam Aadmi Party Rajya Sabha MPs has dealt the party a symbolic blow in Punjab, with two of its backroom strategists - Sandeep Pathak and Raghav Chadha - quitting the party ahead of the 2027 assembly elections, now barely 10 months away.
Pathak and Chadha were central to AAP's sweeping victory in the 2022 Punjab polls. Pathak, described within the party as the "silent mastermind", was in charge of Punjab and built a data-driven grassroots network that powered the campaign. Chadha, then Punjab co-in-charge alongside Jarnail Singh, played the role of the high-profile interface between the Delhi leadership and the state unit.
However, their operational influence in Punjab had already diminished. After AAP's defeat in the 2025 Delhi assembly elections, senior Delhi leaders-including Manish Sisodia-shifted focus to Punjab. Sisodia formally took over as the party's Punjab in-charge in March 2025, effectively assuming the strategist's role.
"Chadha's exit is more of a symbolic and psychological setback than a functional one," said an AAP leader. "Since Sisodia took charge, the leadership and campaign planning have been centrally driven from Punjab."
A former party leader echoed the view, saying the two leaders had helped AAP "crack the Punjab code" in 2022 without contesting elections themselves, but their departure is unlikely to cause an immediate operational vacuum. "The next campaign will be centred on governance rather than the 'Badlav' narrative of 2022," the leader said, adding that the BJP was likely to use their exit to project AAP as a "sinking ship".
Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann has dismissed the defectors as "non-mass leaders" who were only political appointees. Nevertheless, political observers believe the BJP will seek to extract maximum mileage from the optics of senior AAP MPs defecting en masse.
By moving together, the MPs have invoked the two-thirds merger provision of the Tenth Schedule, enabling them to retain their Rajya Sabha seats-a factor that strengthens the BJP's psychological advantage ahead of the Punjab polls.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
BJP will heavily feature the defection in its 2027 Punjab campaign messaging
Very likely · Within months
AAP will refocus on governance narrative rather than 'Badlav' (change) narrative of 2022
Likely · Within months
Open Questions
- Will more AAP leaders follow the defectors to BJP?
- How will AAP's campaign strategy change without Pathak and Chadha?
- Will the defection impact AAP's performance in 2027 Punjab elections?
