Explained | Will AAP Rajya Sabha MPs be disqualified after merging with BJP?

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) suffered a jolt on Friday as seven of its Rajya Sabha MPs, including Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal and Sandeep Pathak, quit the party, with Chadha saying all of them had merged with the BJP, asserting that the Arvind Kejriwal-led party had strayed from its principles, values and core morals.

Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikram Sahni and Swati Maliwal were the other four parliamentarians in the group of seven.

With this, the question arises whether AAP Rajya Sabha MPs will face disqualification after joining BJP.

AAP now has not only lost numerical strength in the Parliament but also its preparedness for 2027 polls in Gujarat, Goa and Punjab, among other states.

After their exit from AAP, only three members remain in Rajya Sabha.

If two-thirds of members of a party exit, and merge with another party, it is not considered as defection and will not be disqualified under anti-defection law.

In this case, out of 10 MPs in Rajya Sabha from AAP, seven will be merging with BJP. If the number of members was any less than this, the ones who would want to merge would have to give up their Upper House membership.

The anti-defection law, under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution prevents leaders switching parties after being elected. So, if two-third of the party members agree to merge with another party, it is not a disqualification.

AAP leader Sanjay Singh on Saturday said that the party will write to the Rajya Sabha chairman to seek the disqualification of seven of its MPs.

"Anti-defection law clearly states that any type of split or faction cannot happen in the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha. It does not carry any legal recognition, even if it's a two-thirds majority," Singh said.

The AAP leader said that neither the anti-defection law nor the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution recognises any kind of split, breakaway faction, or group in the Rajya Sabha or Lok Sabha, two-thirds majority notwithstanding.

The seven MPs who have announced joining the BJP are completely "unconstitutional" and "illegal," he said.

"I am writing to the vice president of India, and chairman of Rajya Sabha, to disqualify the seven MPs," Singh added.

(With PTI inputs)