Sandeep Pathak, the Rajya Sabha MP who recently joined the BJP after quitting the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), is now facing arrest following the filing of two FIRs against him by the Punjab Police.
The details of the charges remain unclear, but media reports suggest that the FIRs have been filed under non-bailable sections, which could lead to his imminent arrest.
A Punjab Police team arrived at Pathak's residence in New Delhi, but the MP had left before their arrival.
"The country is bigger than any party. I will never betray it, nor allow anyone else to do so. If any action has been initiated against someone like me, it only shows how scared they are. I don’t wish to say anything further," he was quoted as saying by India TV.
Both the BJP and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) have questioned the timing of the FIRs, calling it "political vendetta" against Pathak.
"There is no law in Punjab; now, political vendetta is in effect. Bhagwant Mann and Kejriwal's fear exposed,” Punjab BJP working president Ashwani Sharma wrote on X.
“The fact that a non-bailable FIR was registered against Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak ji in Punjab as soon as he left AAP and joined BJP clearly shows that Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann are using the police as a political weapon,” he added.
Accusing Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of turning Punjab into a "police state”, Sharma said the BJP will fight legally and democratically against this “bullying and dictatorship”.
Akali Dal General Secretary Bikram Singh Majithia also accused AAP of "selectively targeting the fallouts".
“Filing FIRs under non-bailable sections after he shifted loyalties points to possible vendetta politics. From influence to investigation, the shift raises serious questions," Majithia wrote on X.
Pathak was one of seven Rajya Sabha MPs who merged with the BJP on April 24, alleging that the AAP had strayed from its principles, values, and core morals. Other MPs who left AAP for the BJP include Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikramjit Sahney, and Swati Maliwal.
Interestingly, except Maliwal, all other MPs are from Punjab.
Earlier this week, Rajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan officially accepted the merger, reducing AAP’s strength in the Upper House to just three members.
