‘He Raises Issues Like Samosa-Pizza…’ CM Bhagwant Mann Lashes Out At Raghav Chadha

Taking aim at Aam Aadmi Party MP Raghav Chadha, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann stated, “I feel that he is compromised.” He hinted that Chadha is acting contrary to the party whip.

Mann asserted that if Chadha is unwilling to speak out on issues such as the deletion of votes in West Bengal, walk out of Parliament over critical matters, or raise his voice against the arrests of numerous AAP workers and leaders in Gujarat, then this constitutes a breach of the party line and a violation of the party whip.

Notably, Bhagwant Mann was responding to questions regarding AAP MP Raghav Chadha during a press conference held in Chandigarh. It is pertinent to mention that just a day after being removed from the post of Deputy Leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha, Chadha had remarked that he had been “silenced, not defeated.”

What Did The Aam Aadmi Party Say?

Hitting back at Chadha, the Aam Aadmi Party accused him of shying away from raising issues against the Centre in Parliament, opting instead to engage in “soft public relations.” While criticizing Raghav Chadha, AAP’s National Media In-charge, Anurag Dhanda, questioned whether an individual who fears Prime Minister Narendra Modi could truly fight for the country.

When asked if he believed Chadha had been “compromised,” Mann replied with a definitive “Yes.” Mann added that it is not an unusual occurrence for political parties to reshuffle their leadership within Parliament.

CM Mann Cites An Example

Addressing Chadha’s removal from the position of Deputy Leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha, Mann recalled: “When I first won an election from the Sangrur Lok Sabha constituency in 2014, Dr. Dharambir Gandhi who was an AAP MP at the time and is now with the Congress party was appointed as the leader of the party’s parliamentary board.”

“Subsequently, I, too, served in that capacity. Therefore, the party routinely takes such decisions.” In response to another question, Mann stated that when we sit as members of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha, many decisions such as staging a walkout are taken collectively. However, if someone breaks the party line or defies instructions, it constitutes a violation of the party whip.

Action Taken For Defying The Whip

CM Mann asserted that if one acts contrary to the party whip, disciplinary action will be initiated. Addressing Chadha’s remark that he had been silenced, Mann asked: “If the party has established a specific stance on an issue such as the situation in Gujarat, where cases have been registered against 160 Aam Aadmi Party workers and leaders and if we are expected to speak on that matter or on issues like MSP, GST, etc., yet instead of addressing these significant topics, someone chooses to raise trivial matters like the price of samosas or pizza delivery services, wouldn’t you begin to suspect that the individual in question (Chadha) is acting at the behest of external forces?”

In response to yet another query, Mann stated that he would register a strong protest with the Chief Minister of Gujarat regarding the arrest of Aam Aadmi Party workers.