Archive · 3 Oct 2026
Priyanka Kakkar Quits AAP, Joins Congress, Praises Rahul Gandhi
Priyanka Kakkar left the Aam Aadmi Party, or AAP, and joined the Congress party.
Two other people joined with her: former Uttar Pradesh legislator Shyam Sundar Sharma and journalist Rajat Rakesh Tandon.
Kakkar said she was no longer able to defend AAP because she felt it had changed from its original ideas.
She criticized the use of helicopters for private travel and the appointment of people to senior roles without, in her view, enough grassroots experience.
She said Congress could help make Delhi cleaner, greener, safer and more progressive.
She also praised Rahul Gandhi and asked people to support him.
In 2023, when she was with AAP, she had argued that Congress should not make Gandhi the opposition’s leader again.
Her public position on Gandhi has therefore changed.
Priyanka Kakkar quit the Aam Aadmi Party and joined the Congress on Saturday with former Uttar Pradesh MLA Shyam Sundar Sharma and journalist Rajat Rakesh Tandon.
Kakkar said AAP had moved away from its founding principles, citing private helicopter travel and senior appointments for people she said lacked grassroots experience.
She said she believes Congress can make Delhi clean, green, progressive and safe, and praised Rahul Gandhi as authentic and resilient.
Kakkar said Rahul Gandhi had raised concerns about alleged voting-right theft involving Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar; this was presented as her claim.
In 2023, Kakkar criticized projecting Gandhi as the united opposition’s face; after joining Congress, she urged support for him.
- Who
- Priyanka Kakkar, Shyam Sundar Sharma and Rajat Rakesh Tandon joined the Congress; Kakkar was an AAP spokesperson.
- What
- Kakkar quit AAP, criticized its direction and praised Congress and Rahul Gandhi.
- When
- Saturday; one report dates the announcement to October 3. Kakkar's earlier criticism of Gandhi was in 2023.
- Where
- New Delhi.
- Why
- Kakkar said she could no longer defend AAP and believed Congress could make Delhi progressive and safe.
Kakkar's past criticism
Kakkar's current support
Rahul Gandhi's opposition role
Kakkar's past criticism
In 2023, Kakkar said Congress should not impose Rahul Gandhi on the opposition or bet on him for a third time.
Kakkar's current support
After joining Congress, she called Gandhi authentic and resilient and urged people to support him.
AAP's direction
Kakkar's past criticism
Kakkar said AAP had departed from its original principles, citing privileges and senior appointments for people without grassroots experience.
Kakkar's current support
Kakkar's claims were her explanation for leaving; Congress representatives welcomed her and the other new members. Pawan Khera separately said AAP had weakened and was moving toward extinction in Punjab.
- Kakkar's former party
- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
- Kakkar's new party
- Indian National Congress
- Other new members
- Shyam Sundar Sharma, a former Uttar Pradesh MLA, and journalist Rajat Rakesh Tandon
- Kakkar's stated criticism
- She cited private helicopter travel and senior appointments for people she said lacked booth-level experience.
- Kakkar's view of Congress
- She said Congress could make Delhi clean, green, progressive and safe.
- Earlier comments on Rahul Gandhi
- In 2023, she opposed projecting him as the united opposition's face and said Congress should not bet on him for a third time.
- Congress leaders named at the event
- Rajiv Shukla, Pawan Khera and Devendra Yadav
- Uttar Pradesh elections
- One report said assembly elections were due in Uttar Pradesh the following year.
Sources
Politics Makes Strange Bedfellows: Priyanka’s U Turn on Rahul.
‘Could no longer defend the indefensible’: Priyanka Kakkar quits AAP, joins Congress
AAP spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar quits party, joins Congress
'No Longer Defend the Indefensible': Priyanka Kakkar Quits AAP, Joins Congress
