Recently, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha member Raghav Chadha got married with Bollywood star Parineeti Chopra at Udaipur. However, the extravagant turned into a political issue in Punjab with the Opposition questioning the ceremony.
The Congress and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) heavily trolled Chadha for spending crores on the luxurious affair, while claiming to be a "simple, poor aam aadmi (common man)". Apart from this, Chadha is also receiving flak for allegedly misusing Punjab government machinery for a private ceremony, as well as choosing Rajasthan as the destination.
Speaking on the wedding, Sukhpal Singh Khaira of the Congress alleged that Chadha, who is a chartered accountant by profession, had shown his annual income as Rs 2.44 lakh in his income tax returns for 2021.
In his video message, Khaira went on to say that Chadha would be paying Rs 10 lakh per night for the “Maharaja suite” in the seven-star hotel where the newlyweds are staying. “Chadha and other Aam Aadmi Party leaders went to town, shouting from rooftops that they were plain, simple, poor people getting into politics to improve the lot of people like them,” he said. “If this is how an aam aadmi gets married, then I wonder what a khas aadmi will be?” he added.
He also alleged that the “Punjab government’s official machinery is being used for the wedding. The engagement ceremony had taken place at Kapurthala House in Delhi, which is the official residence of the Punjab chief minister whenever he visits Delhi".
Sukhbir Singh Badal of SAD repeated the charges, demanding that the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government in Punjab should clarify if the state’s industrialists were footing the bill for the multi-crore wedding. “Punjabis are disconcerted by the big fat wedding of @AamAadmiParty MP @raghav_chadha in which crores are being spent,” he said in a post on X.
SAD MP and former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal shared a video of Chadha landing at the Udaipur airport surrounded by security personnel. "Wedding of @ArvindKejriwal blue eyed boy @raghav_chadha but at his service is CM @BhagwantMann’s hundreds of security men, bullet proof land cruisers etc ! Waah ..!! No wonder Punjab Governer (sic) is rightfully asking where Punjab’s Rs. 50,000 crores worth of loans taken in last 18 months has been spent by @AAPPunjab Govt," she posted.
Akali leader Parambans Singh Romana tweeted an interview of Chadha ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, where he claimed to be the poorest candidate in Delhi and told the interviewer that he had no car, no house or land anywhere. “Q- What has changed between 2019 and 2023? A- Only the govt in Punjab,” posted Romana.
Chadha and Chopra got married in Udaipur Sunday. The guest list included Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
