Rumblings in Punjab AAP as Raghav Chadha gets active

Ruchika M Khanna

Chandigarh, June 14

Though the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has ruled out an immediate Cabinet reshuffle, the rumblings within the party’s state unit are beginning to unfold.

Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab, Raghav Chadha, has already held meetings with several party leaders, MLAs and ministers.

Chadha, whom many considered a parallel power to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann till his departure to the UK earlier this year, has reportedly held several meetings with political leaders since last evening, including the newly elected MPs.

During the 2022 Vidhan Sabha poll, Chadha was at the forefront of the party’s campaign. However, the Lok Sabha campaign in Punjab was solely run by CM Mann. He campaigned for the party candidates in just a handful of constituencies and that too after AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal started his campaign in Punjab.

As the Jalandhar (West) bypoll scheduled on July 10 is being considered a litmus test for CM Mann, especially after the party managed to win just three of the 13 Lok Sabha seats, the return of Chadha to the forefront of Punjab’s political scene has created a buzz in the corridors of power.

Meanwhile, at least two ministers and a handful of MLAs are also learnt to have met Sunita Kejriwal, wife of party supremo who is lodged in the Tihar Jail, in Delhi yesterday.

After the party suffered a drubbing in the LS poll, winning just three of the 22 seats it contested across India, Sunita has become politically active along with Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak.