India, May 1 -- Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday trained his gun on former party colleague Raghav Chadha and other defectors, using both metaphor and pointed references to question their exit from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Speaking during a special session of the Punjab Assembly, where the government moved a Confidence Motion, Mann dismissed the impact of recent defections, saying, "When a broom is used to clean the dirt, a few bristles come out but it doesn't affect the broom."

The remark came days after seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs, including Chadha, switched to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), dealing a major blow to the party's presence in the Upper House.

Moving the Confidence Motion in the 117-member Punjab Assembly on...