AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal hosted Arvind Kejriwal and his family at his official bungalow at 5 Ferozeshah Road for over a year before resigning from the party hours after Kejriwal moved out on April 24, 2026. Mittal provided shelter post-Kejriwal's 2024 chief minister resignation following bail in the excise policy case. Kejriwal shifted to a type-VII government bungalow in Lodhi Estate allotted to AAP as a national party.

Mittal joined six other AAP MPs—Raghav Chadha, Swati Maliwal, Harbhajan Singh, Sandeep Pathak, Rajinder Gupta, and Vikram Sahney—in defecting to BJP, invoking constitutional merger provisions to avoid anti-defection disqualification. Sources revealed Kejriwal called an urgent meeting at Mittal's residence to placate dissenters with ticket promises for the next term, unaware their resignations were finalized.

Tensions escalated after Kejriwal sacked Chadha as Rajya Sabha deputy leader on April 2, appointing Mittal instead amid reports of efforts to "silence" Chadha. Maliwal's inclusion followed her May 2024 assault accusation against Kejriwal aide Bibhav Kumar at the CM residence. The defections represent a major blow to AAP's parliamentary strength.

Kejriwal's last-ditch unity bid failed when the MPs announced their departure before Friday evening's planned meeting. AAP accused BJP of "Operation Lotus" poaching, while defectors cited deviation from the party's anti-corruption roots under Kejriwal's leadership.

This mass exodus compounds AAP's crisis after electoral setbacks and legal battles, weakening its Rajya Sabha presence significantly. Mittal's transition from loyal host to defector underscores deepening internal faultlines as the party faces reorganization ahead of key state polls.