A day after releasing the first candidate list for the Punjab Assembly elections, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party suffered a major setback as two sitting party MLAs - Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra from Sanaur and Chetan Singh Jouramajra from Samana - have tendered their resignation.

The resignations have sparked a buzz over growing discontent within the party. Pathanmajra sent his resignation letter to AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, announcing his decision to quit the party with immediate effect.

In his letter, he wrote, "I hereby submit my resignation from primary membership of Aam Aadmi Party with immediate effect."

Pathanmajra has been in the news over his long confrontation with the Aam Aadmi Party over the government’s handling of floods and a rape case registered against him. He had travelled to Australia, and upon his return, he was arrested by the police.

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A first-time legislator from Sanaur, Pathanmajra was charged with rape, cheating and criminal intimidation on September 1, 2025. He dramatically fled from his relative's house in Dabri village of Karnal the next day, minutes after a Punjab Police team reached the location to arrest him.

Jouramajra had served as minister

Jouramajra represents the Samana Assembly constituency. He has also served as a minister in the Bhagwant Mann government. He announced his resignation through a social media post.

Reports suggest that he was at loggerheads with the party leadership after the AAP high command appointed former senior Shiromani Akali Dal leader Surjit Singh Rakhra as the in-charge of the Samana Assembly constituency.

The ruling AAP has opened the front in the electoral battle with the first candidates list for the polls due early next year. Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann announced the candidates after a meeting of the party's political affairs committee (PAC).

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CM Mann said that the early announcement reflects the ruling party's confidence in the work done by the government in the last five years.