Lawmakers Pathanmajra and Jouramajra defected to the Bharatiya Janata Party shortly after resigning from their previous party, which had already suspended them for alleged anti-party conduct. Both politicians saw their constituencies omitted from the latest slate of 40 election candidates, prompting them to publicly criticize the state leadership. Pathanmajra's induction occurs alongside ongoing legal troubles, as he previously faced arrest in Gwalior and secured high court bail in May 2026. Meanwhile, former police officer Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh also resigned his Amritsar North seat under a separate reform mission.
Key points
The governing party announced it will formally petition the Punjab Assembly Speaker to ca…: The governing party announced it will formally petition the Punjab Assembly Speaker to cancel the legislative memberships of the defectors.
Pathanmajra secured regular bail from the Punjab and Haryana High Court in May 2026 after…: Pathanmajra secured regular bail from the Punjab and Haryana High Court in May 2026 after facing charges of rape, cheating, and firing on police.
The state's ruling administration recently published an initial list of 40 candidates for…: The state's ruling administration recently published an initial list of 40 candidates for the 2027 elections that included jailed minister Sanjeev Arora.
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The BJP announced their induction in a post on X. A video shared by news agency ANI showed Pathanmajra and Jouramajra raising slogans of "BJP Zindabad" during the induction.
The development comes amid growing dissent within AAP, a day after Pathanmajra and Jouramajra resigned from the party following the announcement of its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Assembly elections.
AAP's first list triggers resignations
Pathanmajra, the MLA from Sanaur, and Jouramajra, who represents Samana, resigned from AAP on Sunday, November 1. Neither constituency featured in the party's first list of 40 candidates.
Also read: Suspended AAP MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap resigns as member of Punjab Assembly
Jouramajra, a former Punjab minister, had been dropped from the state Cabinet in September 2024.
Both leaders had criticised the Bhagwant Mann-led government over issues including Punjab's drug crisis, rising state debt, governance and unfulfilled promises.
AAP had suspended both MLAs over alleged anti-party activities before they resigned from the party, according to TOI.
The party has said it will approach the Punjab Assembly…
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