Chandigarh, April 1 -- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) faced a setback as 12 municipal councillors, most of whom were aligned with AAP, defected to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday. This mass exodus comes on the heels of two AAP leaders' - its lone Lok Sabha MP from Jalandhar Sushil Rinku and party MLA Sheetal Angural - recent switch to the saffron party, marking a strategic move ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
The councillors, known as influential figures in their respective constituencies, made the transition under the leadership of Rinku, who orchestrated the joining. The shift took place overnight, with many of the leaders holding key positions within the AAP ranks. The move underscored a growing trend of political realignme...