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    EYE ON INDIA                                                              MAY 08, 2026     |  The Indian Eye                    9

            stating, “There’s no question of co-                                                                  this  problem.  As a relatively newer
            ercion… one after another, so many                                                                    entrant, AAP had been seen as a po-
            people from the Aam Aadmi Party                                                                       tential pillar of opposition politics,
            quit the party.” He went further, ar-                                                                 especially in urban and northern re-
            guing that “all the good people have                                                                  gions. Its weakening reduces the di-
            left Kejriwal,” and accusing the AAP                                                                  versity  and competitive  edge  of  the
            leader of turning the party into a                                                                    opposition space.
            “private party.”                                                                                          Third, the increasing central-
                This narrative serves a dual pur-                                                                 ity of legal and procedural frame-
            pose: it delegitimizes AAP internally                                                                 works in political contestation.
            while reinforcing the BJP’s image as                                                                  The debate over the legality of the
            a consolidating force attracting de-                                                                  merger—whether it complies with
            fectors from across the political spec-                                                               constitutional provisions or exploits
            trum.                                                                                                 loopholes—underscores how insti-
                The  defection of  seven  Rajya                                                                   tutional  mechanisms  are  becoming
            Sabha MPs significantly strengthens                                                                   battlegrounds in themselves.
            the Bharatiya Janata Party both nu-                                                                       Shiv  Sena  (UBT) spokesperson
            merically and strategically. Its tally                                                                Anand Dubey warned that such ma-
            rising to 113 in the Upper House      AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal, along with party leaders Manish Sisodia,    noeuvres could erode public trust in
            enhances legislative leverage, easing        Atishi and others, pays homage to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat,    democratic institutions, particularly
            the passage of key bills. Politically, it            in New Delhi (ANI Photo/Jitender Gupta)          if constitutional authorities are per-
            projects momentum and reinforces                                                                      ceived to be facilitating political out-
            the narrative that opposition parties                                                                 comes. He called for judicial scrutiny
            like the Aam Aadmi Party are weak-  interpreted  the episode very differ-  First, the growing asymmetry be-  before finalizing the merger, reflect-
            ening. The move also expands BJP’s   ently. Atishi termed the merger “un-  tween the ruling party and the oppo-  ing concerns about procedural integ-
            influence  across  regions  and  voter   lawful and unconstitutional,” arguing   sition. The BJP’s ability to expand its   rity.
            segments previously aligned  with   that the constitutional provision for   footprint in the Rajya Sabha—even   Yet, declaring this as the “end”
            AAP.  Additionally,  it  deepens  frac-  merger applies to the original polit-  without direct elections—demon-  of AAP would be premature. The
            tures within the opposition, under-  ical party, not just its legislative wing.   strates  its  organizational  strength   party retains a strong electoral base
            mining coalition unity and position-  She warned that such moves reflect   and strategic depth. Each defection   in Delhi and governance experience
            ing the BJP as the dominant pole in   an attempt to “finish off the Consti-  not only weakens an opposition party   in Punjab. Its grassroots support and
            national politics.                tution and democracy… by hook or   but also strengthens the ruling coali-  brand identity, built over a decade,
                The defections pose an indirect   by crook.”                    tion’s legislative leverage.      cannot be erased by a single episode,
            but real threat to the Aam Aad-       Similarly, Dimple Yadav of the    Second, the fragility of opposi-  however significant.
            mi Party government in Punjab by   Samajwadi Party framed the defec-  tion unity. Rijiju’s remarks about the   At the same time, the scale and
            weakening its national leadership   tions in moral terms, calling them a   INDIA  bloc  being  a  “tukde-tukde”   nature of the defections cannot be
            bench and internal cohesion. Losing   “betrayal of trust.” She emphasized   alliance—pointing to frequent public   dismissed as routine political churn.
            senior  figures  like  Raghav  Chadha   that Rajya Sabha MPs are not direct-  disagreements between leaders like   Losing two-thirds of its Rajya Sabha
            reduces  strategic  depth  and  coordi-  ly elected by the public but nominat-  Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal and   MPs is a severe institutional setback,
            nation between the state and central   ed by their parties, making their de-  others—reflect  a  widely  acknowl-  limiting AAP’s voice in national
            leadership. It may embolden  rivals,   fection particularly contentious.  edged challenge: the opposition’s in-  legislative debates and reducing its
            particularly the Bharatiya Janata     From a broader analytical per-  ability to sustain a coherent, unified   bargaining power within opposition
            Party and Congress, to intensify po-  spective, the episode highlights three   front.                 coalitions.
            litical challenges. More importantly,   critical trends in Indian politics.  The AAP defections exacerbate   The larger question, therefore,
            it risks creating uncertainty among                                                                   is less about the immediate fate of
            party  cadres  and  legislators,  poten-                                                              AAP and more about the trajectory
            tially triggering further defections or                                                               of opposition politics in India. If re-
            dissent, which could destabilize gov-                                                                 gional and emerging parties continue
            ernance if not contained quickly.                                                                     to face internal fragmentation while
                A  weakened  Aam  Aadmi  Par-                                                                     the ruling party consolidates, the bal-
            ty creates political space for the In-                                                                ance of power could tilt further.
            dian National Congress to reclaim                                                                         Operation  of  democracy de-
            lost ground, especially in urban and                                                                  pends not just on electoral victories
            northern regions. With AAP’s appeal                                                                   but also on the presence of a credi-
            as  an alternative diluted, anti-BJP                                                                  ble, organized opposition capable
            votes  may  consolidate  behind  Con-                                                                 of holding the government account-
            gress, strengthening its position as                                                                  able. Episodes like the AAP defec-
            the principal opposition force. This                                                                  tions test that equilibrium.
            is particularly relevant in states like                                                                   In  the  end,  the  political  signifi-
            Punjab and Delhi, where both par-                                                                     cance of this moment will depend on
            ties compete for similar voter bases.                                                                 what follows. If AAP manages to re-
            A diminished AAP also reduces frag-                                                                   build organizational cohesion and re-
            mentation within opposition politics,                                                                 tain its electoral base, it could weath-
            potentially allowing Congress to play                                                                 er the storm. If not, the episode may
            a more central role in coalition-build-  Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who heads the only AAP government in the country, ad-  indeed mark a turning point—not
            ing and narrative-setting against the   dresses the people during the visit to his native Satoj village in Sunam, Sangrur, on Thursday   just for one party, but for the broad-
            Bharatiya Janata Party.                                 (@BhagwantMann/ANI Photo)                     er architecture of opposition politics
                However, the opposition has                                                                       in India.

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