Punjab AAP MLAs switch to BJP: Who are they and why did they quit?

In a major political development ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, pre-poll rebellion hit the Bhagwant Mann government after three MLAs announced their exit from the Aam Aadmi Party. As Monday began, the news of suspended two other MLAs, Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra and Chetan Singh Jouramajra quitting party surfaced. Soon after, Amritsar North MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh announced his resignation from party's primary membership. Significantly, all three MLAs were suspended for alleged anti-party activities. Within hours of announcing their resignation, Pathanmajra, Jouramajra, and Singh made their way to the BJP HQ in the national capital and formally joined the saffron party.

Who are the three former AAP MLAs? 1. Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra -- Sanaur MLA Elected from the Sanaur Assembly constituency in Patiala district in the 2022 Punjab elections. Before joining AAP, he was associated with the Shiromani Akali Dal's youth wing and had served as a Block Samiti chairman. His relationship with the Mann government deteriorated after he publicly criticised its handling of floods and alleged that his constituency's concerns were being ignored. He also alleged that Rs 17 crore sanctioned for development work in his constituency had not been released. His political troubles were compounded by a rape case registered against him last year following a complaint by a Zirakpur-based woman, who had alleged that he misrepresented himself as a divorcee, entered into a relationship with her and later married in 2021 while already being married.

Pathanmajra was arrested by the Punjab Police from Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior in March this year, more than six months after he escaped police custody in the rape case. In May, the Punjab and Haryana High Court granted him regular bail in the case. Why he quit: He accused the AAP leadership of going back on its promises, suppressing his voice and failing to address Punjab's problems. He also cited the BJP's promise to tackle the drug menace as a reason for joining it. 2. Chetan Singh Jouramajra -- Samana MLA Chetan Singh Jouramajra was elected from Samana in the 2022 Assembly elections. He became a minister in the Bhagwant Mann government in July 2022.

Jouramajra, a first time legislator held several portfolios in Mann govt including Health and Family Welfare, Medical Education and Research, and Information and Public Relations. However, he was dropped from the state Cabinet in September 2024 during a reshuffle. Why he quit: Jouramajra criticised the Mann government over drugs, law and order, unfulfilled promises and governance. He alleged that ministers lacked independent decision-making powers and that key decisions were being dictated by the AAP leadership in Delhi. 3. Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh -- Amritsar North MLA A former IPS officer, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh joined the Aam Aadmi Party ahead of the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections and became one of its prominent faces.

His entry into politics was closely linked to his role in investigating the 2015 sacrilege and police firing incidents in Punjab. Singh won the Amritsar North Assembly seat in 2022. His relationship with the AAP leadership deteriorated over his public criticism of the government's handling of certain cases. In June 2025, AAP suspended him for five years after he criticised the arrest of senior Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia and questioned the conduct of the Punjab Vigilance Bureau. Why he quit: Singh had increasingly distanced himself from the party leadership. In his resignation announcement, he spoke about the need to fight drugs, extortion, gangsterism and corruption, and called for clean politics and transparent governance.