NEW DELHI: In another major
setback
for
opposition bloc
INDIA, the Aam Aadmi Party (
AAP
) on Saturday said it will soon pick candidates for all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab and 1 in Chandigarh.
The announcement comes weeks after Punjab chief minister and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann ruled out an alliance with the Congress in the state.
AAP convenor and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that names will be announced in “10-15 days”.
Speaking at a rally, Kejriwal said: “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 of these 14 seats. You [supporters] have to make AAP sweep all these 14 seats with majority.”
Names for Goa, Haryana and Gujarat soon
The party is also scheduled to hold a meeting of its Political Affairs Committee (PAC) on February 13 to decide on the candidates for the Lok Sabha seats in Goa, Haryana, and Gujarat. The AAP has already announced three candidates in Assam and one in Gujarat.
The party has accused the Congress of stalling seat-sharing talks in the run up to Lok Sabha polls.
“Talks have been going on for a long time now. No conclusion has been drawn from the talks. I believe that since the elections are around the corner, we have less time and more work to do. We have announced three candidates for Assam. I hope that these seats will be accepted by the INDIA alliance and given to the AAP,” party MP Sandeep Pathak said.
AAP’s decision comes on the heels of a similar move by Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, who announced the party’s decision to contest alone in the Lok Sabha polls.
The TMC chief had also cited failed seat-sharing talks with the Congress, a key member of the bloc, for her decision to go it alone in the crucial polls.
(With inputs from agencies)
