AAP To Contest All 13 Seats In Punjab And One In Chandigarh
AAP supremo, Arvind Kejriwal has announced that the party will release the list of candidates for Punjab in the next 10-15 days, The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will contest all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab and one in Chandigarh, said Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday. With this announcement, it has practically brought the curtains down on the Opposition’s INDIA alliance in the state.
“Two years back, you gave us blessings. You gave 92 out of 117 seats to us (in Assembly elections). You created history in Punjab. I have come to you with hands folded, seeking one more blessing. Lok Sabha elections are due in another two months. For Lok Sabha elections, Punjab has 13 seats and one from Chandigarh – a total of 14 seats. In the next 10-15 days, AAP will declare its candidates in all these 14 seats. You have to make AAP sweep all these 14 seats with a majority,” he said at an event in the state today.
Arvind Kejriwal made the announcement while addressing a gathering in Khanna, Punjab.
Last month, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann had announced that his party will contest all 13 seats in Punjab.
Today, Mann attacked the Congress, saying the party has lost its ground in the state. These remarks suggest that the ongoing talks between AAP and the Congress over seat-sharing haven’t progressed in Punjab.
The two parties, who are traditionally bitter rivals in Punjab and Delhi, had contested the Chandigarh mayoral elections together last month. It was an indication that maybe they would extend the alliance to the Lok Sabha elections as well. However, Kejriwal’s remark indicates that the two parties may face the BJP and SAD in Punjab each on their own in the forthcoming electoral competition.
Trouble Piling Up For INDIA bloc
Kejriwal’s announcement today is yet another blow to the already beleaguered INDIA bloc that was formed last year to take on the might of the BJP in the coming Lok Sabha elections. The Mallikarjun Kharge-led group recently lost its two main regional bigwigs in Nitish Kumar and Mamata Banerjee.
Bengali