AAP's warring factions hold talks

The two warring factions of the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) Punjab unit met on Tuesday in a bid to iron out their differences ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Members of the two groups described the meeting as "positive" and "fruitful" and said they looked forward to resolving their issues through dialogue.

"Our discussion was very positive and we discussed a range of issues," MLA Sarabjit Kaur Mauke, leader of a five-member core committee which was formed to reach out to the rebel group, said.

Kharar legislator Kanwar Sandhu, who is a part of the dissident group, said it was a fruitful preliminary meeting.

"We had a good two-hour-long meeting and had a detailed discussion," Sandhu said.

"We put our points before them and they will take it to the party's core committee," he said.

"We will hold a meeting again," he added.

The rebel group, led by Sukhpal Singh Khaira, had already announced that the discussions will be based on the six resolutions passed at a volunteers' convention at Bathinda on August 2, including one for autonomy for the party's state unit.

The AAP's Punjab unit plunged into a crisis when the party leadership appointed Harpal Singh Cheema as the Leader of Opposition on July 26, replacing Khaira.

Its troubles deepened with the dissidents forming an ad hoc Political Affairs Committee (PAC) and naming Khaira as the interim chief of the party's state unit.