Big blow to AAP as three Punjab MLAs join BJP ahead of 2027 Assembly elections

In a major setback to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, three of its leaders, Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra, Chetan Singh Jouramajra and Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday.

The three leaders arrived at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi and were seen raising slogans of "BJP Zindabad" before formally joining the party in the presence of senior BJP leaders.

The development comes amid growing differences within the Punjab AAP unit and a day after the ruling party announced its first list of 40 candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections.

Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra, who represents the Sanaur constituency, and former cabinet minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra, the MLA from Samana, resigned from the AAP on Sunday. Meanwhile, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, who represented Amritsar North, resigned from the Punjab Legislative Assembly on Monday before joining the BJP.

The resignations came amid growing differences between the leaders and the AAP leadership over the party's functioning and electoral strategy in Punjab.

Pathanmajra said the BJP, being a national party, could bring significant benefits to Punjab if it came to power in the state. He also cited the BJP's commitment to eliminating the drug menace and expressed hope that the party would address issues such as Punjab's debt burden and farmers' concerns.

Both Pathanmajra and Jouramajra also launched a sharp attack on the AAP leadership, alleging interference by Delhi-based leaders, particularly Arvind Kejriwal and his close aide Bibhav Kumar, in Punjab's governance. They raised concerns over alleged corruption, rising crime, extortion, gang violence and the government's failure to fulfil its promise of making Punjab drug-free.

The AAP, meanwhile, requested the Punjab Assembly Speaker to cancel the membership of the two legislators, stating that they had already been suspended from the party over alleged anti-party activities.

Who is Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh?

Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, a former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, represented the Amritsar North constituency. He was suspended from the AAP for five years in June last year over alleged anti-party activities.

Before joining politics, Singh headed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the 2015 sacrilege-related police firing incidents in which two Sikh protesters were killed.

In his resignation message, Singh said he wanted to work towards rebuilding Punjab, alleging that the state was struggling with drugs, extortion, gang culture and corruption. He also maintained that his objective was to ensure clean politics and transparent administration, stating that his priority was "Punjab First".

AAP faces challenge ahead of 2027 Punjab Assembly polls

The latest political development comes at a crucial time for the ruling AAP, which recently announced its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.

The exit of three leaders, including two sitting legislators, has raised questions about the party's internal cohesion and its electoral strategy ahead of the high-stakes polls.

The BJP, meanwhile, could look to capitalise on the developments to strengthen its political presence in Punjab as the state prepares for another Assembly election.