The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday wrote to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat requesting the removal of Raghav Chadha as the party’s deputy leader in the Upper House, proposing Ashok Mittal as his replacement.
The move comes amid an apparent rift between the party leadership and Chadha, who has reportedly been absent from several key party meetings and events in recent months.
Sources within AAP indicated that there was “no particular trigger” behind the decision, and that Chadha had not been found guilty of any “anti-party activities.” However, they acknowledged that the leadership had been considering such a step for some time.
Insiders further revealed that Chadha had been unavailable at “crucial junctures,” including during the party’s show of strength after the discharge of leaders Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia in the excise policy case in late February. They added that he had “gradually grown more distant” from the party and its senior leadership.
Signs of growing differences had become evident earlier when Chadha—who has been a Rajya Sabha MP since 2022 with two years of tenure remaining—was left out of the party’s list of star campaigners for the ongoing Assembly elections across five states and a Union Territory.
Party insiders suggested that Chadha is unlikely to face formal suspension, as the leadership wants to avoid giving him “martyr status.” Instead, he is expected to continue as one of the party’s 10 MPs in the Rajya Sabha “till he chose to.”
The development comes just days after Chadha praised the Udaan Yatri café at Mumbai airport in NDA-ruled Maharashtra. “Visited the Udaan Yatri café at Mumbai Airport and had chai for just ₹10. Was flying to Delhi and wanted chai before the flight. Spoke to several travellers while I was there. All of them happy, all of them saying the same thing: Easy on the pocket, good service, value for money. Affordable airport food is possible. And this is proof☕ ✈️”.
