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Raghav Chadha should explain why he is afraid to speak against the Modi Govt on issues of public interest: AAP

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has declared the removal of Punjab Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha from the post of deputy leader as a routine disciplinary action, while firmly pushing back against his claims. The party has directly questioned why he has consistently avoided speaking out against the BJP and the Modi Government on issues concerning the country and the party, raising serious concerns over his prolonged silence. It asserted that Raghav Chadha had repeatedly acted against the party line, citing instances such as refusing to sign the impeachment motion against the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and declining to speak in Parliament on the LPG crisis, in clear violation of the party whip. The AAP further pointed out that for a considerable period, Raghav Chadha has not raised a single issue in Parliament where he has questioned the Modi Government, arguing that this pattern reflects a troubling reluctance to take on the Centre. Emphasizing that AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal has instilled a culture of fearless political engagement, the party underscored that such hesitation weakens both accountability and opposition politics, asking pointedly how a politics driven by fear can sustain itself. On this, Punjab CM Bhagwant Singh Mann said that this is a decision of the party and such decisions are taken from time to time. He stated that parties keep changing their leader and deputy leaders in Parliament. "When I won the election for the first time, the party made Dr. Gandhi the leader. After some time, I also became the leader of the Parliamentary Board. This is a party decision. Such small decisions keep happening. Many times, in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, all opposition parties have to take decisions collectively, whether it is to walk out of the House or to oppose the policies of the government." "If any individual does not support these collective decisions and goes against the party line, then it is against the party whip. If anyone goes against the party whip, action will be taken," he said. Senior AAP leader and MP Sanjay Singh said that they are true soldiers of Arvind Kejriwal and have learnt only one thing from him: to fight and struggle with fearlessness, courage, and determination. "But it is unfortunate to say that on several issues concerning the country, when a proposal comes against the CEC, Raghav Chadha does not sign it. In West Bengal, people's voting rights are being taken away. In Delhi, we saw how the Election Commission was misused. When it comes to Punjab's issues, he remains silent and says nothing. He does not raise his voice against Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said. The AAP MP further said that on issues related to public interest, the country, the AAP, and party workers, Raghav Chadha remains silent. "AAP workers are beaten in Gujarat, yet he does not speak. The Modi Government snatches away Punjab's rights, yet he says nothing. When the matter of walking out of the House arises on several issues, he does not participate in the walkout. These are all questions that the country and the people want answers to from Raghav Chadha," he added. AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj said that all of them are soldiers of Arvind Kejriwal and have learnt one thing: "If you are afraid, you are finished." He said that they are supposed to look the government in the eye and raise people's issues. "In recent days, we have seen that anyone who raises serious issues against the government, questions it, and speaks for the people is being banned across social media platforms like X, Facebook, and YouTube. FIRs are being registered, and cases are being filed," he said. Saurabh Bharadwaj said that the government does not care if someone does soft PR in Parliament. "A small party gets very limited time in Parliament. If someone is raising issues like samosas, it is far more important to raise the big issues of the country. Across the country, we have seen that before elections, genuine votes are cut and fake votes are created, and the government captures the system through dishonesty to win elections. The same is happening in West Bengal," he said. Saurabh Bharadwaj said that all opposition parties recently wanted to bring an impeachment motion against the Chief Election Commissioner, but Raghav Chadha refused to sign it. "Whenever such issues arise where the opposition walks out, you do not walk out. For a long time, I have seen that you have not raised a single issue in the House where questions were asked of Prime Minister Narendra Modi or the BJP Government. How will such politics of fear continue?" he said. He further said that issues of Punjab must be raised. "You have been elected from Punjab, yet you hesitate to raise those issues. Recently, around 160 AAP workers in Gujarat faced FIRs under false cases, and several were arrested, yet you remained silent. Many AAP leaders were in jail. Arvind Kejriwal, as Chief Minister, was arrested in a false case, yet you were not in the country and went into hiding somewhere," he said. The AAP Delhi Unit Chief added that real issues of the country must be raised with fearlessness and courage. "We must look the BJP in the eye and raise issues. Otherwise, your soft issues do not affect the government. In fact, the BJP has been supporting you on social media since Thursday. You should reflect on where you started and where you have reached, what the country needs, and how you can do better," he said. Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Delhi Assembly, Atishi, questioned why Raghav Chadha is so afraid of the BJP. "Why are you afraid to question the BJP? Why are you afraid to question Narendra Modi? Today, the country is going through a major crisis. Our democracy and Constitution are under threat. Right before our eyes, elections are being stolen in West Bengal through the misuse of the Election Commission, yet you are not raising questions and are afraid to speak," she said. Atishi said that in Delhi too, votes were wrongly deleted and fake votes were created. "The BJP workers manipulated votes and won elections dishonestly. The same is happening in West Bengal. When the Trinamool Congress and the entire opposition brought an impeachment motion against the Election Commission, Raghav Chadha refused to sign it. Did he once raise questions in Parliament about the attack on democracy in West Bengal? Did he question vote deletion or fake voter creation? Why did he not raise these questions? Is he afraid of the BJP? Is he afraid of Narendra Modi?" she said. Atishi further said that today, the biggest crisis for the common man is the LPG gas cylinder issue. "Raghav Chadha may not face difficulty as he is a Rajya Sabha MP, but a common family living in a small house or a kachchi colony with one gas connection is struggling to cook food for their children. A father is forced to choose between going to work for daily wages or standing in long queues to get a gas cylinder so that his children can have food the next day," she said. She added that when AAP raised the LPG issue in the Punjab and Delhi assemblies and when MPs were raising the issue in Parliament, Raghav Chadha remained silent. "Was he afraid of Narendra Modi? Today, every citizen must decide whether they stand with Narendra Modi or with the Constitution and democracy," she said. Atishi recalled that when Arvind Kejriwal was arrested, AAP workers were on the streets fighting. "Police were lathi-charging us and dragging us away. We were detained in different police stations in Delhi, including Narela and Bawana. While we were fighting daily on the streets, Raghav Chadha was in London. He told us that he was there for an eye operation. At that time, the media questioned us repeatedly, and we defended him, saying he was not afraid. But today, even I wonder, when Arvind Kejriwal was arrested, was he afraid of the BJP? Was he afraid of Narendra Modi? Did he run away to London out of fear?" she said. The Delhi Assembly LoP added that Raghav Chadha may be afraid of Narendra Modi or of going to jail. "But we are soldiers of Arvind Kejriwal. We are not afraid of the BJP, Narendra Modi, their agencies, or jail. We will continue to raise the voice of the common people of this country. We will continue to stand for democracy. The Constitution and democracy will not be saved by fearing Narendra Modi or the BJP. Today, Raghav Chadha must decide whether he stands with the Constitution or with Narendra Modi," she said. AAP National Media In-Charge Anurag Dhanda said that they are soldiers of Arvind Kejriwal and fearlessness is their primary identity. "If someone is afraid of Modi, how will they fight for the country? The party gets a very limited time to speak in Parliament. In that time, one can either fight to save the country or raise issues like cheaper samosas in airport canteens. Hundreds of our workers in Gujarat have been arrested by the BJP's police. Did the honourable MP say anything in the House?" he said. Anurag Dhanda further said that in West Bengal, the right to vote is being taken away. "When a proposal came in the House against the CEC, he refused to sign it. When the party walked out of the House, he remained seated to mark attendance for Modi. For the past few years, you have become afraid, Raghav. You hesitate to speak against Modi. You hesitate to raise real issues of the country. The one who is afraid is as good as finished," he said.

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