The Punjab election results announced today catapulted the Aam Aadmi Party from what was perceived to be a fledgling political party limited to Delhi on to the national stage. Storming to power with a thunderous mandate, the AAP decimated regional forces like the Congress and the Akali Dal to win 91 seats in the 117-strong Punjab legislative assembly and was leading on one seat. The exit polls predictions on March 7 had predicted a similar fate which held true as the results rolled out. AAP’s conquest of Punjab saw the Congress pushed out of power and a very distant second spot with 18 seats. The party faced humiliation with its incumbent Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi losing Chamkaur Sahib as well as Bhadaur. It was not just Congress that suffered the giant-killer AAP wave. The Shiromani Akali Dal witnessed electoral losses in the form of both Parkash Singh Badal from Lambi and son Sukhbir Singh Badal from his bastion in Jalalabad.
Also Read: Punjab Assembly Election 2022 Full Winners List – Check latest updated list here
AAP, meanwhile, saw a stunning turnaround from its 2017 tally. From its Chief Ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann winning Dhuri to Leader of Opposition Harpal Singh Cheema from Dirba, AAP has made inroads in Punjab shedding its regional player image with aplomb. Addressing a victory event in the national capital, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is also the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party, termed AAP’s Punjab victory as nothing short of an ‘inqalab’ or ‘revolution’ that will spread to other parts of the country.
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While Navjot Singh Sidhu has offered to quit as PPCC chief, many feel that the infighting between him and Channi impacted the Congress severely. In 2017, the Congress had put an end to the 10-year-old term of the Akali-BJP alliance. The then CM, Captain Amarinder Singh, formed his own party following his unceremonious exit from the Congress, tasted a bitter defeat in these elections on his home turf Patiala. Known as the ‘Maharaja of Patiala’, the captain also lost out to the AAP.
In a departure from the tradition, CM-elect Bhagwant Mann has announced that the swearing-in ceremony will take place in Khatkar Kalan, the ancestral village of iconic freedom fighter Shaheed Bhagat Singh. The BJP, which secured three seats in 2017, managed to win just 2 seats in these elections.