Chandigarh, Mar 16: A day after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal apologised to former Punjab minister Bikram Singh Majithia in a bid to be relieved of defamation charge, the party's state unit president Bhagwant Mann resigned from his post.

Mann on Friday announced his decision to quit from his post of AAP Punjab president. "I will no longer continue. My fight against drug mafia and all kind of corruption in Punjab will continue as an "aam aadmi “ of Punjab," the Sangrur MP said.

On Thursday, Kejriwal had issued an apology to Majithia, whom he had accused of being "hand-in-glove with global drug-mafia racket". Ahead of the Punjab assembly elections last year, Kejriwal had promised to lodge Majithia in jail "within four weeks" if his party comes to power.

Mann, who represents the Sangrur seat in Lok Sabha, is one of the tallest faces of the AAP in Punjab. In the 2014 general elections, he had wrested the seat from Shiromani Akali Dal with a margin of 2,11,721 votes.

Mann's dissidence comes nearly a year after, the party former Punjab unit convenor Sucha Singh Chhotepur had resigned, alleging "high-handedness of the Delhi high command" -- referring to the top coterie of AAP leaders in the national capital.

Mann could be the third Lok Sabha MP of AAP who could be on his way out from the party. In 2015, two of the four party lawmakers - Harinder Singh Khalsa and Dharamvira Gandhi - had quit the party alleging lack of "internal party democracy".

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 16, 2018 11:01 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).