Big setback for AAP ahead of Punjab polls as 3 rebel leaders join BJP

Mangalore Today News Network

Punjab, Nov 2, 2026: Three rebel leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra and Chetan Singh Jouramajra, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Delhi on Monday, November 2, in a major political development and a big setback for the AAP ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.

The three leaders’ exit from the AAP came amid growing differences with the party leadership and follows a series of resignations in its Punjab unit.

While Pathanmajra and Jouramajra resigned from the AAP’s primary membership on Sunday, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh announced his resignation as a member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly on Monday.

The developments come days after the ruling AAP announced its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, triggering questions over the political future of several sitting legislators.

Two AAP MLAs Quit Party, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Resigns As MLA

Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra, who represents the Sanaur Assembly constituency in Patiala district, and Chetan Singh Jouramajra, the MLA from Samana, resigned from the AAP’s primary membership on Sunday.

Pathanmajra submitted his resignation to AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, announcing his decision to leave the party with immediate effect. Jouramajra, a former Cabinet minister in the Bhagwant Mann government, announced his resignation through a social media post.

According to media reports, both leaders had been unhappy with the party leadership’s decisions concerning their respective constituencies.

The AAP had appointed new constituency in-charges in Sanaur and Samana, fuelling speculation about possible changes in its candidate selection for the upcoming elections.

Meanwhile, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, the MLA from Amritsar North and a former IPS officer, announced his resignation from the Punjab Assembly on Monday.

He submitted his resignation to Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan, stating that it would take effect from November 1, 2026.

Singh had been suspended from the AAP for five years in June 2025 over alleged anti-party activities. His suspension followed his criticism of the Punjab Vigilance Bureau’s action against Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia in a disproportionate assets case.

Kunwar Vijay Pratap Says ‘Punjab First’

In a message addressed to the people of Amritsar, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh thanked them for their support and said he would remain indebted to them “until my last breath".

He called for a collective effort to move beyond what he described as the “politics of lanes and ribbon-cutting" and bring Punjab back on the path of progress.

Describing the state as being trapped by drugs, extortion, gangsterism and corruption, he called for clean politics and transparent administration.

Singh also claimed that he had achieved 90 per cent of the targets he had set for himself as a legislator.

“In the Punjab Legislative Assembly, I always raised the voice of Amritsaris and boldly addressed issues from water and sewage to Circuit House, Company Bagh, dirty drains, Guru Nanak Dev University, Government Medical College, Saroop Rani College, and the Bargari sacrilege case," he said.

He further claimed that his biggest achievement was ending the ‘mai-baap’ culture in politics and treating the public as his source of inspiration.

“Working together with you to formulate a forward strategy, I will aim to ensure clean politics and transparent administration. My sole purpose is ‘Punjab First’. Apart from this, I will have no personal interests," he said.
AAP’s Punjab Unit Faces Dissent Ahead Of Assembly Elections

The three leaders’ departure comes at a crucial time for the AAP, which is preparing for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.

The party recently announced its first list of 40 candidates, naming Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann from Dhuri, Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan from Kotkapura and jailed minister Sanjeev Arora from Ludhiana West.

The list also features several other ministers, including Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal from Ajnala, Balkar Singh from Kartarpur, Jai Krishan Singh Rouri from Garhshankar, Kulwant Singh from SAS Nagar and Labh Singh Ugoke from Bhadaur.

The announcement was followed by the resignations of Pathanmajra and Jouramajra, neither of whom featured in the first list. The party had also appointed new constituency in-charges in their respective constituencies, leading to speculation about possible changes in its electoral plans.

Pathanmajra has faced controversy after a rape case was registered against him. He had reportedly travelled to Australia after the case was registered and was subsequently arrested after returning to India.

He was also involved in differences with the party leadership over issues concerning his constituency.

Jouramajra, meanwhile, had served as a Cabinet minister in the Bhagwant Mann government before being dropped during a Cabinet reshuffle.

His differences with the party leadership reportedly intensified after former Shiromani Akali Dal leader Surjit Singh Rakhra was appointed constituency in-charge of Samana.

In the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections, the AAP had won 92 of the state’s 117 seats, while the Congress secured 18 seats.