Edited by Deepali Verma
Another setback befalls the opposition INDIA bloc as the Aam Aadmi Party has said it will announce candidates for all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab, pointing out no potential alliance with the Congress in the state.
The announcement read that the AAP will contest all 13 seats in the state with 1 in Chandigarh which came on February 10 by the party chief Arvind Kejriwal, who also took a dig at Congress and said people in Punjab would be hard-pressed to recall any “good work” that his INDIA ally had done when it ruled the state.
The Delhi chief minister’s statement adds to the turmoil in the opposition grouping, which is presently reeling from Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s declaration of her party going solo in West Bengal, and is yet to recover from the loss of one of its principal architects, Janata Dal (United) President Nitish Kumar, who switched to the BJP-led NDA last month.
The situation is not clear in Uttar Pradesh as there have been speculations of an agreement between the Samajwadi Party and the Congress. However, there is additional speculation of another INDIA ally, the Jayant Chaudhary-led Rashtriya Lok Dal, joining hands with the NDA. The rumours have strengthened since the government announced that the Bharat Ratna will be graced posthumously on former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, Jayant Chaudhary’s grandfather.
Addressing a public event regarding the doorstep delivery of ration in Punjab, Mr. Kejriwal said in Hindi, “The Lok Sabha is to be held in two months… Punjab has 13 seats and Chandigarh has one. The coming 10-15 days, AAP will announce its candidates for all 14 seats. I request you all to bless us like you did during the Punjab Assembly election two years ago, and ensure that the AAP sweeps all 14 seats.”
“The Bhagwant Mann government has done commendable work in less than two years, which includes giving free electricity. The Congress ruled (the state) for many years in the past 75 years. If I ask you to point out one good work the Congress has done, you will not be able to remember. If I ask you for one good thing that Akali Dal had done, you will not remember,” the AAP chief said.
Additionally, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann remarked in January that the Aam Aadmi Party would contest the Lok Sabha polls alone in the state.
