'Embarrassing rows': Delhi Minister Kailash Gahlot quits AAP; party dubs it BJP 'conspiracy'

In a setback for the Aam Aadmi Party ahead of the Delhi assembly elections, Delhi Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Kailash Gahlot has resigned from the party.

He has cited "embarrassing controversies" like the Sheeshmahal incident as the reason for his resignation from the party.

Gahlot has also tendered his resignation from the Council of Ministers, GNCTD. Gahlot, who represents the Najafgarh constituency of New Delhi, was the transport and environment minister of Delhi.

In his letter to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, Gahlot said that the party faces grave challenges from within and "political ambition" has overtaken their commitment towards the people leaving many promises unfulfilled. He gave the example of the government's promise to clean the river Yamuna, which was not cleaned and is even more polluted than before.

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Further, he said in his letter that there are many "embarrassing and awkward" controversies like the Sheeshmahal, which is making people doubt whether we still believe in being the Aam Aadmi.

Another painful point for him has been that instead of fighting for people's rights, the party was increasingly fighting for their "own political agenda", he wrote in his letter. This has severely crippled their ability to deliver even basic services to the people of Delhi, he pointed out.

Delhi's progress cannot happen if the majority of the time the Delhi government is fighting with the Centre, he wrote. Gahlot has posted his resignation letter on the X platform.

Who is Gahlot?

The 50-year-old Gahlot is a Jat leader who is from the Mitraon village in Delhi.

Gahlot joined the AAP before the 2015 Assembly elections and won the Najafgarh seat by a thin margin of 1,550 votes. He went on to win the seat again in 2020 by over 6,000 votes.

When he took charge of his ministry in September 2024 under the Atishi government, he had said that he would work like the way 'Hanuman' did for Lord Ram and become 'Kejriwal's Hanuman' in a post on X. 

Gahlot is an accomplished advocate in the Supreme Court and Delhi High Court with over 16 years of legal practice with a distinguished set of clients across sectors.

In 2018, Gahlot had come under the scanner of the Income-Tax department, which had conducted searches at several premises linked to him in connection with an alleged tax evasion case.

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BJP's low-level politics: AAP 

In its first official reaction after Kailash Gahlot’s resignation, AAP MP Sanjay Singh accused the BJP of successfully executing a “conspiracy” through low-level politics.

“BJP has succeeded in its conspiracy. Gahlot, who was under pressure from the BJP and had been questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), was being targeted by central agencies, including the CBI and ED,” Singh claimed.

Regarding the allegations made by Gahlot in his resignation letter, Singh argued, “He can’t make such allegations as he was part of the government for five years. BJP has handed over a script to Gahlot, he will have to act accordingly.”