AAP Holds Firm: Bhagwant Mann Wins Confidence Vote in Punjab Assembly
Punjab CM silences defection rumours as AAP’s 89 MLAs back the government in a stormy Labour Day special session, while BJP boycotts and Congress walks out
CHANDIGARH, May 1, 2026 — In a show of political muscle aimed at quelling months of speculation about a fractured ruling party, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday won a confidence motion in a special session of the state’s Vidhan Sabha, firmly asserting that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) remains united and formidable.
The Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government won the confidence motion in the special session of the Assembly, asserting that AAP was still strong and expanding its reach.
The motion came at a pivotal moment for the party. AAP on April 24 had suffered a significant blow in the Rajya Sabha when seven of its ten MPs crossed over to the BJP, led by the party’s former Deputy Leader Raghav Chadha, professor-turned-politician Sandeep Pathak, and Ashok Mittal.
Eighty-nine AAP MLAs were present for the session — with Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra and Laljit Singh Bhullar, the two MLAs currently in jail, being the exceptions — while BJP legislators boycotted the session entirely.
A whip had been issued by Chief Whip of the ruling party Baljinder Kaur on Thursday, making attendance mandatory for all 94 AAP MLAs as the government prepared to move the confidence motion to prove its majority.
Speaking to reporters after the win, Mann dismissed claims that the party was on the verge of collapse. “All speculations have been put to rest today regarding all those who were saying that 65 or 40 MLAs of AAP are going away,” he said. Taking a pointed dig at the defecting Rajya Sabha MPs, Mann compared the departing leaders to bristles of a broom, saying that when a broom sweeps away dirt, a few bristles may fall out, but the broom itself remains intact.
The session was far from smooth. Proceedings turned increasingly chaotic after Congress MLAs staged a walkout, with Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa leading demands that all members undergo breath analyser and dope tests conducted by doctors from PGIMER, amid allegations about the conduct and physical condition of members during the session.
Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Cheema dismissed Congress’s allegations, calling them entirely false.
The Opposition was united in branding the entire exercise as political theatre. Congress, SAD, and BJP accused the AAP government of convening the special session on Labour Day to bring a confidence motion and secure a six-month window during which a no-confidence motion cannot be moved. Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar said Chief Minister Mann was making “desperate attempts” to prevent the party from breaking apart.
The confidence motion was moved just days ahead of the high-profile exit of seven Rajya Sabha MPs from AAP. With the vote now passed, the ruling party has effectively shielded itself from any immediate no-confidence challenge for the next six months, giving AAP breathing room to consolidate its legislative numbers.
