New Delhi:
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s move to field its Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora in an assembly bypoll has set off a buzz that party chief Arvind Kejriwal may replace him in the Upper House after his recent poll defeat ended his Delhi assembly membership.
AAP announced this morning that Mr Arora will contest the by-election to Ludhiana West, which had fallen vacant after the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Gogi last month in an accidental firing while cleaning his pistol.
Mr Arora, a businessman, was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2022 from Punjab, and his tenure is set to end in 2028. But to contest the assembly elections, he must resign from the Parliament. In that case, his vacant seat may be allotted to Mr Kejriwal.
Though the AAP has denied any such move so far, the party is said to be holding discussions in this regard.
Sources suggest that Mr Arora can also be made a minister if he wins the byelection – as a reward for giving up his seat for the party boss.
Punjab is currently the best bet for Mr Kejriwal after his party lost power in Delhi after a decade. Since vacating the government bungalow after resigning as Chief Minister last year, he has been living in Delhi at another Punjab MP Ashok Mittal’s house.
Unlike Mr Arora, Mr Kejriwal has no membership hurdle in joining the Rajya Sabha since his Delhi assembly membership was snatched by the BJP’s Parvesh Verma in the recent elections. With party leader Atishi becoming the Leader of Opposition, he is also free to shift his focus only to the national arena.