New Delhi: Speculation is mounting over Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwalโs possible entry into Parliament through the Rajya Sabha.
The buzz intensified after AAP fielded sitting Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora as its candidate for the Ludhiana West Assembly bypoll.
The announcement was made on Wednesday by AAPโs national general secretary Sandeep Pathak on X. The date for the bypoll is yet to be announced.
Arora, an industrialist from Ludhiana, has been a Rajya Sabha member since 2022.
His nomination for the bypoll has fueled speculation that he may vacate his seat, paving the way for Kejriwal to enter the Upper House.
The Ludhiana West seat fell vacant following the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi, who succumbed to an accidental gunshot injury at his residence last month.
Reacting to his nomination, Arora expressed gratitude towards the party leadership. โHumbled and grateful to the leadership AAP for reposing faith in me to contest the Ludhiana West bye-elections. As someone deeply connected to my hometown, I look forward to serving my people with dedication and sincerity,โ he posted on X.
Earlier on Tuesday, Punjab Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa claimed that Kejriwal may soon take the Rajya Sabha route and that Aroraโs nomination could be a strategic move to vacate his seat for the former Delhi Chief Minister.
โFirst, Kejriwal wanted to come through Gurpreetโs (deceased AAP MLA Gurpreet Gogi) seat. But then he felt that this would have a massive reaction in Punjab, and Punjabis wouldnโt stand outsiders. So, he took a step back. Most probably, there can be some truth to the information regarding Arora sahab,โ Bajwa said.
Bajwa also reiterated his claim that 32 AAP MLAs in Punjab are in touch with Congress, suggesting that internal dissent is growing within the party.
He further alleged that Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is in talks with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
This development comes in the wake of AAPโs poor performance in the Delhi Assembly elections, where the party won only 22 out of 70 seats, while the BJP secured 48. Congress failed to win a single seat.
