Amritsar: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is facing fresh political turbulence in Punjab after Amritsar North MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh resigned from the state Assembly on Monday, November 2, becoming the third party legislator to break away within two days.
The development follows the exit of two other sitting MLAs, Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra of Sanaur and Chetan Singh Jouramajra of Samana, who resigned from the party's primary membership on Sunday. All three leaders joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi on Monday, according to reports.
The exits come as AAP prepares for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections. The party released its first list of 40 candidates on October 31, a day before Pathanmajra and Jouramajra announced their resignations.
Singh, a former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, had already been suspended from AAP for five years in June 2025 over alleged anti-party activities. He had remained critical of the state government's handling of several issues, including the 2015 sacrilege-related police firing cases and the drug problem.
In his resignation message, Singh said he had achieved 90 per cent of the targets he had set as a legislator. He described ending the "mai-baap" culture in politics as one of his key achievements and said he had raised constituency-specific issues in the Assembly.
He also reiterated his commitment to clean politics and transparent administration, saying his sole objective was "Punjab First".
The latest departures follow a major setback for AAP in April, when seven of its Rajya Sabha MPs joined the BJP. Six of those MPs represented Punjab, the only state where AAP currently governs.
The latest departures involve three Punjab legislators, but the wider exodus from the party has included members of Parliament and senior organisational figures.
Three Assembly legislators: Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra, Chetan Singh Jouramajra and Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh are the three legislators involved in the latest developments. Pathanmajra and Jouramajra resigned from AAP on November 1, while Singh, who had been suspended from the party in 2025, resigned from the Assembly on November 2. All three joined the BJP.
Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra: The Sanaur MLA had publicly criticised the state government's handling of floods in his constituency and raised questions about its functioning. His relationship with the party leadership was also strained by a rape case registered against him following a complaint by a woman. He was arrested in Gwalior in March 2026 after escaping a police operation in Punjab. The Punjab and Haryana High Court granted him regular bail in May. After quitting AAP, he said the BJP could help Punjab address issues including drugs, debt and farmers' concerns. He also cited the party's promise to tackle the drug problem.
Chetan Singh Jouramajra: The Samana MLA and former Cabinet minister said he no longer felt connected to the party. His resignation followed his removal from the state Cabinet in September 2024. AAP's appointment of former SAD minister Surjit Singh Rakhra as the constituency in-charge in Samana also fuelled speculation that Jouramajra might not receive the party's ticket for the 2027 election.
Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh: The former IPS officer was suspended from AAP for five years in June 2025 after questioning the party leadership and the state government's handling of several matters. He had criticised the government's approach to the 2015 sacrilege and police firing cases, questioned action against SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia and raised concerns over the drug problem and law and order. In his latest statement, he accused the party of moving away from its founding principles and said he had been sidelined.
Six Punjab Rajya Sabha MPs: In April 2026, six AAP MPs representing Punjab in the Rajya Sabha joined the BJP. They were Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta and Vikramjit Singh Sahney. Swati Maliwal, who also joined the BJP in the same group, represented Delhi. The seven MPs constituted two-thirds of AAP's then strength in the Rajya Sabha, and their merger was accepted by the Rajya Sabha Chairman.
The departures came amid internal differences over the party's leadership and direction. Chadha said AAP had moved away from its founding principles and described himself as the "right man in the wrong party". He had also been removed as the party's deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha shortly before the exit.
Sahney subsequently said he was dissatisfied with the Punjab government's direction, criticising its dependence on welfare measures and alleging that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann did not value suggestions. Other departing MPs did not all offer the same public explanation. Reports also pointed to the sidelining of senior figures and disagreements within the party leadership.
AAP accused the BJP of engineering defections, while the BJP and the departing MPs presented the move as a political choice. The allegations of inducement or political coercion have not been established by the developments cited here.
Other senior exits: Former AAP spokesperson Iqbal Singh left the party in 2025 and joined a faction of the Shiromani Akali Dal. He cited what he described as excessive interference by the Delhi leadership in Punjab's organisational and governmental affairs. He argued that the party had moved away from its promise of empowering people in the state.
Taken together, these developments indicate that the party has faced dissent at both the organisational and parliamentary levels. However, the departures should not be treated as a single coordinated exodus: the leaders left at different times and cited different reasons.
The Punjab Legislative Assembly has 117 seats, with 59 required for a simple majority.
The latest official party-wise position available before the November 2 developments listed AAP with 94 members, the Congress with 16, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) with three, the BJP with two, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) with one and an Independent with one. The latest exits have complicated that arithmetic.
Pathanmajra and Jouramajra have quit AAP and joined the BJP, but AAP has said it will approach the Speaker seeking disqualification of their legislative membership. Their status in the Assembly therefore depends on the Speaker's decision and the application of the anti-defection provisions.
Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, meanwhile, has tendered his resignation from the Assembly. The resignation must be dealt with by the Speaker before the seat is formally treated as vacant.
The Congress remains the largest opposition party in the House, with 16 members in the last official party-wise tally. The SAD, BJP, BSP and Independent members make up the remaining opposition benches.
March 2022: AAP forms its first government in Punjab
AAP won 92 of the state's 117 Assembly seats in the February 2022 election, ending the Congress government's tenure and securing a sweeping mandate. Bhagwant Mann was sworn in as Chief Minister on March 16 at Khatkar Kalan, the birthplace of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.
March 2022: Anti-corruption helpline launched
Mann announced an anti-corruption helpline soon after taking office. The WhatsApp-based service was launched on March 23, allowing people to submit audio and video evidence of alleged demands for bribes by public officials.
July 2022: Free electricity scheme takes effect
The government began providing up to 300 units of free electricity per month to domestic consumers from July 1. The measure became one of the most prominent welfare initiatives of the new administration.
2023: Aam Aadmi Clinics expanded
The state government expanded its network of Aam Aadmi Clinics to provide primary healthcare services. The administration also continued recruitment drives and promoted its education and healthcare initiatives as key elements of its governance model.
2024: AAP faces a mixed electoral outcome
In the 2024 Lok Sabha election, AAP won three of Punjab's 13 parliamentary constituencies. The party also retained electoral ground in the state through Assembly by-elections, including the Jalandhar West seat.
September 2024: Cabinet reshuffle
Jouramajra, who had held Cabinet portfolios in the Mann government, was dropped from the Council of Ministers during a reshuffle. His later departure from AAP came amid speculation over the party's candidate plans for Samana.
2025: Internal dissent and political criticism intensify
The party faced criticism from sections of its own leadership over governance, organisational control and the influence of its national leadership in Punjab. Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh was suspended for five years in June over alleged anti-party activities. The government also faced opposition criticism over law and order, drugs, public finances and the pace of delivery of election promises.
April–May 2026: Rajya Sabha defections and confidence motion
Seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs joined the BJP in April, including six from Punjab. The development prompted the Mann government to seek a confidence vote in the Assembly. The House passed the motion in May, with AAP legislators reaffirming their support for the government.
October–November 2026: Candidate selection triggers fresh exits
AAP released its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Assembly elections on October 31. The following day, Pathanmajra and Jouramajra resigned from the party. Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh resigned from the Assembly on November 2. All three joined the BJP.
The defections come at a time when AAP is beginning to select candidates and prepare its organisation for the next Assembly election.
The departures also expose differences over candidate selection, the role of the national leadership in Punjab, and the government's handling of issues such as drugs, law and order, public finances and the state's development priorities.
For the opposition, the exits provide an opportunity to question the stability of the ruling party and its claims of internal unity. The BJP, which has had a limited presence in the Punjab Assembly, gains prominent political figures through the latest inductions, although the legislative status of the two MLAs who quit AAP remains subject to the Speaker's decision.
AAP, meanwhile, continues to command a substantial majority according to the last official Assembly tally. Whether the latest departures develop into a wider organisational challenge will depend on the response of its remaining legislators, the party's candidate selection and its ability to address internal disagreements before the 2027 election.
(With inputs from ANI, PTI, The Indian Express, The Tribune and Hindustan Times)