Chandigarh, November 1, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Two Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs from Punjab, former minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra and Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra, resigned from the party’s primary membership on Sunday, a day after AAP released its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.
Both legislators announced their resignations through separate social media posts.
Jouramajra represents the Samana Assembly constituency in Patiala district, while Pathanmajra represents Sanaur, also in Patiala district. Jauramajra was also serving as president of AAP’s Patiala district unit.
Neither legislator figured in the party’s first list of candidates announced on Saturday, October 31. However, their omission was not entirely unexpected, given the developments surrounding their political careers and their relations with the party leadership.
Jouramajra’s Removal from Cabinet and Rakhra’s Entry
Chetan Singh Jouramajra was inducted into the Punjab Cabinet when Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann formed his government in 2022 and was initially assigned the Health portfolio.
He subsequently courted controversy during a visit to Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, when he asked the then Vice-Chancellor to lie on a hospital bed to demonstrate its condition.
The incident drew widespread criticism, and the Vice-Chancellor subsequently resigned following the controversy.
Jouramajra was later dropped from the Punjab Cabinet during a major reshuffle in September 2024.
He was among four ministers removed following a decision by the AAP leadership, reportedly based on assessments of ministerial performance and party feedback. His formal resignation was submitted ahead of the swearing-in of the new ministers.
However, even after his removal from the Cabinet, Jouramajra continued to remain active in his Samana constituency, attending to public issues and maintaining contact with his constituents.
The political situation changed when AAP inducted former minister and senior Shiromani Akali Dal leader Surjit Singh Rakhra into the party and subsequently appointed him as Halqa Incharge of Samana.
The decision was widely seen as a clear indication that Rakhra was being positioned as the party’s likely candidate from Samana in the 2027 Assembly elections, considerably diminishing Jouramajra’s prospects of securing another nomination.
Against this backdrop, Jouramajra’s decision to resign from AAP comes amid indications that the party leadership was preparing to field a different candidate from his constituency.
Pathanmajra’s Legal Troubles and Differences with Leadership
Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra had also been embroiled in controversy following a case registered against him.
He reportedly escaped from a police team that had arrived to arrest him at a relative’s residence in Haryana. He subsequently travelled abroad before returning to India, where he was arrested and sent to jail.
Pathanmajra’s relations with the AAP leadership had remained strained. He had publicly criticised the party and its leadership, including national convener Arvind Kejriwal, and continued his criticism after his release from jail.
In view of his differences with the party leadership, his prospects of securing AAP’s nomination for the 2027 Assembly elections had appeared uncertain.
Future Political Plans Yet to Be Announced
Both Jauramajra and Pathanmajra have announced their resignation from AAP’s primary membership but have not disclosed their future political plans.
The two legislators have scheduled a press conference in Chandigarh on Sunday, where they may clarify their next course of action.
Their resignations come as AAP has begun announcing candidates for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, with the party having declared nominees for 40 of the state’s 117 constituencies in its first list.
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