Chandigarh: Three leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), including two sitting MLAs, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi on Monday, November 2, ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.
Those who joined the BJP were Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra, Chetan Singh Jouramajra and former IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, who represented the Amritsar North constituency.
The leaders joined the BJP at the party’s headquarters in the presence of senior party leaders.
Pathanmajra, the MLA from Sanaur, and Jouramajra, who represents Samana, resigned from the AAP’s primary membership on Sunday, November 1. Their resignations came a day after the party announced its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Assembly elections.
The AAP had not announced candidates for either Sanaur or Samana at the time of their resignations.
Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh announced his resignation from the Punjab Legislative Assembly on Monday and subsequently joined the BJP. He had earlier been suspended from the AAP for alleged anti-party activities.
After joining the BJP, Singh criticised the Bhagwant Mann-led government, raising concerns over unemployment, law and order and the influence of criminal elements in the state.
Pathanmajra also raised concerns over farmers’ debt and the law and order situation. He referred to Uttar Pradesh as an example of how a BJP government could address issues related to law and order.
The BJP described the developments as a setback for the ruling party and suggested that more AAP leaders could switch sides ahead of the Assembly elections.
BJP spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill termed the defections the beginning of a possible larger political shift within the AAP.
The development comes as political parties begin preparations for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, with the AAP seeking another term in the state.
