Punjab BJP leader Ashwani Sharma slams CM Mann for his 'silence' over corruption charges

The AAP suffered a crippling blow last week when seven of its 10 Rajya Sabha MPs -- Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikramjit Sahney and Swati Maliwal -- quit and merged with the BJP, alleging that the party had strayed from its principles, values and core morals.

Punjab BJP working president Ashwani Sharma on Tuesday slammed Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, accusing him of maintaining silence over the allegations of corruption and compromise on principles against the ruling AAP levelled by Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha and other leaders. Sharma also criticised AAP leaders for calling ''traitors'' the seven Rajya Sabha MPs, including Chadha, who recently quit AAP and joined the BJP. ''Those being labelled as traitors are known for their hard work and achievements and have brought global recognition to Punjab and Punjabis,'' Sharma said here. The Pathankot MLA mentioned names of MPs Rajinder Gupta, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, and Vikramjit Singh Sahney, highlighting their contributions in industry, education, sports, and social service. ''If changing parties is considered betrayal, then Bhagwant Mann himself is a traitor for having switched parties,'' said Sharma. Members of his cabinet who came from other parties -- ”Gurmeet Singh Khuddian, Aman Arora, Barinder Kumar Goyal, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, Tarunpreet Singh Sondh, Hardeep Singh Mundian, and Lal Chand Kataruchak -- ”would also fall under the same category, said the BJP leader. Similarly, those who joined AAP from other parties and contested assembly bypolls -- ”Hardeep Singh, Dimpy Dhillon, Harmeet Singh Sandhu, Ishank Kumar, and Mohinder Bhagat -- ”would also be termed ''traitors'', he said. Several AAP founders and senior leaders such as Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan, Kumar Vishwas, and Alka Lamba had raised serious questions about Arvind Kejriwal's leadership, the party's policies, and its credibility while leaving it, he said. Sharma said the same concerns are now being raised by Rajya Sabha MPs, but no response has been given so far. The AAP suffered a crippling blow last week when seven of its 10 Rajya Sabha MPs -- Raghav Chadha, Ashok Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, Harbhajan Singh, Rajendra Gupta, Vikramjit Sahney and Swati Maliwal -- quit and merged with the BJP, alleging that the party had strayed from its principles, values and core morals. Six of the seven MPs who quit AAP were from Punjab.