Inside Track: Fair-weather MPs
If SEVEN AAP Rajya Sabha MPs have quit the party, the blame cannot be attributed entirely to the BJP’s ruthless tactics in mobilising enforcement agencies to intimidate AAP’s MPs. Arvind Kejriwal erred by nominating individuals not on the basis of loyalty or legislative skills but on their monetary contributions. Of the seven defectors, one manufactures fertilisers, the other towels and a third runs a large private university in Punjab. One defector admitted on TV that he and others had met Amit Shah before the switch! Incidentally, around two million unfollowed Raghav Chadha on his Instagram account within three days of leaving AAP. His large social media presence was one of his strengths. Signs of his fair-weather followers drifting away was evident to Kejriwal in March 2024 when he was arrested for alleged involvement in the liquor scam. Chadha mysteriously left for the UK for dental treatment instead of joining the solidarity protests against his leader’s arrest. The businessmen MPs, who had little to do with AAP all along, were also absent from rallies in support of Kejriwal. Incidentally, the BJP has its eye on breaking two other parties in the Rajya Sabha, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar’s NCP. Tellingly, MP........
