In a significant political development in Punjab, the Aam Aadmi Party has taken decisive disciplinary action against one of its senior legislators. Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, a former Indian Police Service officer and sitting MLA from Amritsar North, has been suspended from the party for five years. The move was announced following a meeting of the party’s Political Affairs Committee (PAC), which concluded that the legislator had engaged in activities inconsistent with the party’s ideological commitment, particularly in relation to Punjab’s high-stakes war against drugs.
The decision to suspend Kunwar Vijay Pratap came in the wake of his public criticism of a recent vigilance operation involving Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia. Singh had raised questions about the timing and intent behind the government’s renewed action against Majithia, who was previously jailed on drug-related charges and later granted bail. In a pointed social media post, he also shared a video showing a confrontation between Majithia’s wife and the state vigilance team, terming the approach as arbitrary and politically motivated.
The Aam Aadmi Party, currently in power in Punjab under Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, viewed Singh’s remarks as undermining its uncompromising stance against the drug menace. The PAC held that Singh’s statements provided unnecessary political ammunition to the opposition, especially at a time when the party is aggressively pushing its anti-drug narrative both inside the Assembly and on public platforms. By questioning the credibility of the ongoing probe, the MLA had, according to the PAC, attempted to weaken the government’s ideological clarity on the issue.
The suspension signals a broader message from AAP’s central leadership, indicating zero tolerance for internal dissent when it appears to conflict with core policy goals. AAP leaders have consistently maintained that the battle against narcotics is not just a political campaign but a moral imperative, particularly in Punjab where successive regimes—across parties—have been accused of either complicity or inaction in curbing the drug trade. The party has also highlighted that it is committed to dismantling both the political and administrative nexus believed to be behind the state’s drug problem.
Kunwar Vijay Pratap’s criticism was seen as a direct challenge to this narrative, especially given his former stature as a high-ranking police officer and the public trust he enjoys. However, his disapproval of the process adopted against Majithia raised uncomfortable questions for the party, which is keen to project institutional integrity and law-based governance in its second year of rule.
Insiders suggest that the party had attempted to engage with Singh before taking this drastic step, but his continued defiance and social media activity left the leadership with no choice but to act. The five-year suspension is being seen as an unprecedented disciplinary move by AAP and may set a benchmark for how the party handles internal disagreement on sensitive issues going forward.
The development is expected to resonate beyond party lines in Punjab politics, especially as rival parties seize on the internal fissures within AAP. The Shiromani Akali Dal, which has consistently accused AAP of misusing state machinery for political vendetta, may view this suspension as vindication of its stand. On the other hand, critics within AAP’s own ideological base may raise concerns about freedom of expression and the handling of internal debate.
Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, known for his integrity during his tenure in the Punjab Police and for being a central figure in the investigation of the 2015 sacrilege cases, had entered politics with a promise to uphold transparency and justice. His removal from the party’s active fold might now rekindle debates about political accountability, ideological rigidity, and the space for dissent within reformist parties.
#AAPPolitics #PunjabDrugsCrisis #KunwarVijayPratap #BikramMajithiaCase #IndianPolitics
This is an auto web-generated news web story.
