Congress and AAP will be face-to-face in Punjab, no seat sharing for Lok Sabha elections

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress, both part of the INDIA bloc for the Lok Sabha elections, have decided to contest separately in Punjab. The suspense surrounding this decision, which had persisted for several months, finally ended with today’s press conference held in Delhi.

From the outset, Congress leaders had been indicating their intention to contest separately across the entire state, presenting the matter to the party high command. Meanwhile, CM Bhagwant Mann had been asserting confidence in winning by a margin of 13-0.

Preparations for the elections had begun well in advance by both the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party. AAP is currently conducting a survey to determine suitable candidates for all Lok Sabha seats, while Congress is collaborating with three private companies to gauge the mood of the state’s populace, with the survey results expected by month-end. Punjab Congress in-charge Yogendra Yadav and party president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring have toured all Lok Sabha constituencies, engaging in meetings with party workers.

The 2019 Lok Sabha elections were notably intriguing, occurring during Captain Amarinder Singh’s Congress government tenure in the state.

The electoral landscape featured a direct contest among Congress, Aam Aadmi Party, and BJP-Akali Dal, with the latter alliance remaining intact.

Out of the state’s 13 Lok Sabha seats, Congress secured eight, while the BJP-Akali Dal alliance clinched four, and the Aam Aadmi Party won one seat, secured by the incumbent Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who entered Parliament by winning the Sangrur Lok Sabha seat at the time.