Lok Sabha polls: Actor Karamjeet among 8 candidates in AAP's Punjab list

The Aam Aadmi Party said that it will fight the Lok Sabha polls in Punjab alone, giving a jolt to the Congress. Both are members of the Opposition alliance INDIA but could face each other in Punjab

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday released its first list of eight candidates for Punjab for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The list featured big guns, including cabinet ministers and Punjabi actor Karamjeet Anmol. The actor-turned-politician will contest the polls from the Faridkot seat.

The AAP has also fielded five cabinet ministers for the polls. According to the list, ministers Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal from Amritsar, Laljit Singh Bhullar from Khadoor Sahib, Gurmeet Singh Khudian from Bathinda, Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer from Sangrur, and Balbir Singh from Patiala have been fielded.

Jalandhar MP Sushil Rinku has again been fielded from the seat.

Congress turncoat gets ticket

Notably, former Congress MLA Gurpreet Singh GP, who recently joined the Arvind Kejriwal-led party, has got a ticket from the Fatehgarh Sahib seat.

Punjab has 13 Lok Sabha constituencies. The AAP, which runs the government in Punjab, has announced that it plans to contest all Lok Sabha seats alone, snubbing its INDIA ally Congress. The two parties have finalised a deal in Delhi, Haryana, Goa, and Gujarat. However, they are likely to face each other in Punjab.

"If you ensure (the party's) victory in all 13 seats, you will strengthen (Chief Minister) Bhagwant Mann's hands. It is Mann alone who is fighting the Centre. It is Mann who is only fighting the governor and the BJP," party chief Kejriwal had said on March 2.

In that case, this would make Punjab the second state after West Bengal, where INDIA allies could fight against each other. Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress has also announced plans to fight the poll battle alone in Bengal.

BJP to shortlist candidates today

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Punjab is also geared up for the polls and may shortlist nominees for all 13 seats today.

Notably, there are rumours that an alliance between the BJP and its former alliance partner, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), might be on the cards. It is also being said that suspended Congress Lok Sabha MP from Patiala, Preneet Kaur, will fight on a BJP ticket to retain her seat in the elections. Kaur is the wife of former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh. She joined the saffron party today.