Rajinder Gupta's nomination to the Rajya Sabha was seen as AAP’s attempt to bring in a prominent industrialist from Punjab and address criticism of a Delhi-centric leadership. (File Photo) Ever since he was elected to the Rajya Sabha as an Aam Aadmi Party candidate in a bypoll in October 2025, Rajinder Gupta came to be defined as the richest politician in Punjab. On Friday, he along with six other AAP Rajya Sabha members, joined the BJP, marking a new chapter in his political journey. Gupta, 66, who founded textiles major Trident Group, has a net worth of $1.2 billion, or over Rs 10,600 crore, as per Forbes’s list of global billionaires. He was nominated by AAP to the Rajya Sabha from Punjab in a bypoll after the resignation of Sanjeev Arora, who was elected MLA from Ludhiana West and later inducted as a minister in the Bhagwant Mann government. Gupta was sworn in as an MP in November 2025.…