In a significant setback to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), 15 of its councillors resigned on Saturday and announced the formation of a new political outfit, citing stalled development work and growing discontent within the party ranks.
Led by senior councillor Mukesh Kumar Goel, the breakaway group unveiled its new party, the Indraprastha Vikas Party. Addressing the media, Goel alleged that no development work had been carried out during their tenure and blamed AAP’s internal conflicts and inaction for the stagnation. "The party was too busy with blame games. Councillors were not even allocated budgets for development,” he said.
The rebellion, however, triggered sharp accusations from AAP, which alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was behind the defections. The party claimed each councillor was offered ₹5 crore to switch sides in a planned "horse-trading operation". There was no immediate response from the BJP on the matter.
"This is not an organic split,” AAP said in its official statement. “Since the time of the Mayor election, the BJP has been trying to poach our councillors. Now they are staging a drama by launching a new party. Make no mistake, this is a BJP operation from start to finish.”
With the resignation of 15 councillors, AAP’s strength in the 250-member MCD has dropped from 113 to 100. The BJP, meanwhile, now holds 117 seats, while the Congress retains 8.
The anti-defection law does not apply to municipal bodies like the MCD, giving the defectors the space to float their new party without risking disqualification.
Among the councillors who resigned from AAP and joined the new party are Hemchand Goel, Himani Jain, Runakshi Sharma, Usha Sharma, Ashok Pandey, Rakhi Yadav, Sahib Kumar, Rakesh Kumar Ladi, Manisha, Sumali Anil Rana, Dinesh, Mukesh Kumar Goel, Devinder Kumar, Leena Kumar and Kamal Bhardwaj.
AAP leaders who resigned today.
1.) Hemchand Goel
2.) Himani Jain
3.) Runakshi Sharma
4.) Usha Sharma
5.) Ashok Pandey
6.) Rakhi Yadav
7.) Sahib Kumar
8.) Rakesh Kumar Ladi
9.) Manisha
10.) Sumali Anil Rana
11.) Dinesh
12.) Mukesh Kumar Goel
13.) Devinder Kumar
14.) Leena Kumar
15.) Kamal Bhardwaj
Goel, a veteran of Delhi’s civic politics and the former Leader of the House in MCD, had joined AAP from Congress in 2021. He contested the recent Delhi Assembly elections from Adarsh Nagar on an AAP ticket but was unsuccessful.
Several of the rebel councillors had similarly switched to AAP from Congress ahead of the last municipal polls. They claimed their decision to break away was rooted in governance concerns, not state-level political ambitions.
The timing of the revolt is notable. It comes shortly after the BJP reclaimed control of the MCD, following a controversial mayoral election that AAP boycotted. AAP had won the MCD polls in 2022 but lost the mayor’s post due to alleged cross-voting and internal disputes.
This internal rift also follows broader political troubles for AAP. The party faced a crushing defeat in the Assembly elections earlier this year, which prompted a series of leadership changes.
Former minister Saurabh Bharadwaj was made the new president of the party’s Delhi unit in March. Former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia was given charge of Punjab, while Gopal Rai and Sandeep Pathak were assigned responsibilities for Gujarat and Chhattisgarh, respectively.
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