AAP submits petition to Rajya Sabha chairman seeking disqualification of 7 MPs over merger with BJP

Party's Rajya Sabha floor leader told that the move by the seven MPs amounted to defection under Tenth Schedule of the Constitution and the anti-defection law.

New Delhi: AAP on Sunday submitted a petition to Rajya Sabha Chairman CP Radhakrishnan seeking the disqualification of seven MPs who defected to the BJP by announcing a merger.

Party's Rajya Sabha floor leader Sanjay Singh told reporters that the move by the seven MPs, including Raghav Chadha and Sandeep Pathak, amounted to defection under Tenth Schedule of the Constitution and the anti-defection law.

The AAP petition has sought the termination of the memberships of the MPs as they were elected to the Rajya Sabha on an AAP ticket but have left the party to join the BJP.

"After consulting Constitutional experts and seeking the opinion of Kapil Sibal, I have sent a petition to the Chairman requesting that the membership of these seven members be completely terminated, as per the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution," he said.

He said he expected the Chairman to take a "just decision" at the earliest. Chadha, Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikram Sahni and Swati Maliwal quit and merged with the BJP last Friday.

Singh on Sunday alleged that such defections were a betrayal of the people's mandate, particularly in Punjab, and also against the spirit of the Constitution.

He said it had been made clear that "the MPs were liable for disqualification under the law". Chadha and others are arguing that two-third of the Parliamentary party in Rajya Sabha have merged with BJP and it does not attract disqualification.

However, the other side argues that the Tenth Schedule is clear that the "original party" has to merge and in this case, AAP has not merged with the BJP, which would mean that the seven MPs are liable for disqualification.