Less than a year after joining the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), former Bengaluru Commissioner of Police Bhaskar Rao has decided to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Speaking to TNM, Bhaskar Rao said that he did not find any scope for growth in AAP and that was the reason why he chose to move out. He visited the BJP’s state office on Tuesday, February 28, and held meetings with state president of the party Nalin Kumar Kateel, party Karnataka in-charge K Annamalai, state Minister R Ashoka and Union Minister Prahalad Joshi. 

“There was no growth in AAP. In the last year, I really tried my best to build the party. I was inspired by PM Modi and decided to join the BJP. I am not sure what role I will play in the BJP,” Bhaskar Rao told TNM. 

The BJP is yet to confirm whether Bhaskar Rao is joining the party.  

While in AAP, Bhaskar Rao was said to have been planning to contest the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections from Basavanagudi constituency. He had served as the vice-president of AAP in Karnataka and was appointed as chairman of the manifesto committee in January 2023.

Bhaskar Rao's decision to resign comes as a big blow to AAP and will cause much embarrassment to party chief Arvind Kejriwal who is scheduled to arrive in Karnataka on March 5. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is the national convener of the party, will visit Karnataka along with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and is expected to interact with party workers in the state. 

The development comes less than a year after Bhaskar Rao joined AAP in April 2022. The former Bengaluru Commissioner of Police had joined the party immediately after resigning from police service. He was one of the prominent faces of AAP in Karnataka.