From Aam Aadmi To Crorepatis: AAP’s Rajya Sabha Pick Shows Party’s Shift Toward Wealthy Candidates

When the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) emerged over a decade ago, it promised to bring the aam aadmi — the common man — into the heart of politics. But the party’s recent choices suggest a marked shift from that founding principle.

On Sunday, the party named industrialist Rajinder Gupta as its candidate for the Rajya Sabha bypoll in Punjab on October 24. The chairman of Trident Group – the richest man in Punjab — is filling the post vacated by another industrialist, Sanjeev Arora.

In Indian politics, it is nothing unusual if a rich man gets a ticket for elections from political parties but for Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP, which promised a break from traditional politics, the move underscores how far the party’s candidate profile has drifted from its original plank.

Currently, there are nine AAP MPs i