AAP councillor joins BJP

New Delhi: Aarti Chawla, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Municipal councillor from Rajendra Nagar, officially joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Thursday, marking a setback for senior AAP leader Durgesh Pathak. The event took place in the presence of Delhi BJP president, Virendra Sachdeva, and saw Chawla join the BJP alongside her supporters, including local AAP leaders Rajat Chawla, Deepak Nagpal, and Ramit Arora.

Addressing the media, Sachdeva emphasised that Chawla’s departure from AAP was a blow to Pathak, who oversees the AAP’s affairs in the Delhi Municipal Corporation. “Even a councillor from Pathak’s own constituency has left AAP, indicating the growing dissatisfaction within the party,” said Sachdeva.

Later in the evening, several leaders and members from local Resident Welfare Associations (RWA), including Vijender Sharma, President of Adarsh Nagar RWA, and Hari Prakash Sharma, General Secretary of Keval Park Extension RWA, joined the BJP in support of BJP’s candidate, Rajkumar Bhatia. Senior BJP leader Anubhav Dheer was also present at the event.

Virendra Sachdeva welcomed the new joiners with the BJP party scarf and criticised AAP, alleging that party leader Arvind Kejriwal was restricting his representatives from serving the public effectively. “Leaders who genuinely want to contribute to Delhi’s development are increasingly turning to the BJP,” Sachdeva added.