Within days of Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, and Rajinder Gupta joining the BJP, Punjab state agencies launched raids, inspections, and a non-bailable FIR against the group. They were joined by prominent industrialists Ashok Mittal, the founder of Lovely Professional University, and businessman Rajinder Gupta.
This move sent shockwaves through Punjab’s political landscape and questioned the future of the Aam Aadmi Party. But what happened next has sparked an even louder conversation across the country.
Within days of them joining the BJP, Punjab’s machinery came alive with a series of actions targeting each from the group.
- The Punjab Pollution Control Board raided Rajinder Gupta’s businesses.
- Ashok Mittal’s Lovely Professional University was inspected by the Punjab government.
- Most recently, the Punjab Police lodged a First Information Report against Sandeep Pathak under non-bailable sections of law. The exact charges in the FIR have not been made fully public, and it is not yet clear why the case has been registered against the sitting lawmaker.
The Timing Question Nobody Can Ignore
For years, while these leaders were part of the AAP and its broader political network, none of these actions were taken. The Pollution Control Board did not raid Gupta’s businesses. The government did not inspect Lovely Professional University. No FIR was filed against Sandeep Pathak. The moment they crossed the aisle, all of it happened within days.
Now The Big Question is:
Were these genuine regulatory and legal concerns that had been pending for years and finally got addressed? Or were they held in reserve, to be deployed the moment these leaders became a political inconvenience?
Sandeep Pathak: A Target For A Reason?
The FIR against Sandeep Pathak deserves special attention. Pathak is not just any politician. He is the man credited with designing and executing AAP’s organisational strategy across states, including in Punjab itself. He knows the internal workings of the party better than almost anyone else. He knows its strategies, its networks, its vulnerabilities, and its playbook.
For the BJP, Pathak is an immensely valuable acquisition. For the AAP, he is an equally significant loss. By registering a non-bailable FIR against him so soon after his defection, the Punjab government may be trying to keep him legally occupied, reputationally damaged, and strategically distracted before he can bring his skills to bear for the opposition.
Students, Employees And Livelihoods Pulled In
Perhaps the most troubling dimension of this episode is what the inspection of Lovely Professional University represents. LPU is not a small institution. It is one of India’s largest private universities, with a massive campus and a student body that runs into the hundreds of thousands.
Students, faculty, and staff at LPU have nothing to do with Ashok Mittal’s political choices. But when a university becomes a target because its founder switched parties, the collateral damage falls on people who never asked to be part of any political drama.
A Warning To Others?
Many political watchers believe that these actions are about sending a message to every other AAP leader, legislator, and associate who may be considering making a similar move..
The BJP has called the actions “political vendetta” and “a blatant misuse of state power.” AAP has not officially responded at the time of publication.
The Bigger Picture
What is unfolding in Punjab is not unique to this state or this moment.
Across India, the use of state and central agencies against political opponents has been a growing concern for years, cutting across party lines. When regulatory bodies, police forces, and inspection authorities are seen as instruments of political pressure rather than neutral enforcers of the law, it does long-term damage to the public’s trust in all of these institutions.
The case of Raghav Chadha and Sandeep Pathak will be watched closely, not just in Punjab but across the country. For now, the four leaders who walked through the BJP’s doors a few days ago have found that leaving one political home does not necessarily mean finding safety in another.
This story is developing. Updates will follow as official statements and legal details emerge.