LS polls: AAP releases first list of 8 candidates for Punjab, fields five Cabinet ministers

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday released its first list of eight candidates for Punjab for the Lok Sabha polls, fielding five Cabinet ministers.

The state's ruling party also named a former Congress MLA and a Punjabi actor as its candidates for the polls expected to be held April-May.

The AAP, which is a constituent of the opposition INDIA bloc, is contesting the parliamentary polls on its own in Punjab, which sends 13 members to the Lower House of Parliament.

''The Aam Aadmi Party proudly presents its candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections 2024 in Punjab,'' said the party in a post on X.

The names of the candidates were announced by AAP national general secretary Sandeep Pathak.

According to the list released by the party, Cabinet ministers Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal has been fielded from Amritsar, Laljit Singh Bhullar from Khadoor Sahib, Gurmeet Singh Khudian from Bathinda, Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer from Sangrur and Dr Balbir Singh from Patiala.

Dhaliwal, Bhullar, Khudian and Balbir Singh are first-time MLAs from Ajnala in Amritsar district, Patti in Tarn Taran district, Lambi in Muktsar district and Patiala Rural in Patiala district, respectively.

Dhaliwal, who holds the portfolios of NRI affairs and administrative reforms in the Bhagwant Mann government in Punjab, had unsuccessfully contested from the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat in the 2019 parliamentary polls.

While Bhullar, who is the transport minister, had defeated Congress' Harminder Singh Gill in the 2022 assembly polls in Patti, Khudian, who is the agriculture minister, had defeated Shiromani Akali Dal patriarch and five-time Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal in Lambi.

Two-time Barnala MLA Hayer, who holds the portfolios of sports and youth welfare, water resources and science and technology in the AAP government, thanked the party leadership for reposing faith in him by selecting him as the candidate for Sangrur -- a parliamentary seat won by Mann in 2014 and 2019. Hayer was the president of the youth wing of the AAP. Patiala Lok Sabha seat candidate Balbir Singh, a doctor, is the health minister and was co-convener of the AAP unit in Punjab. The AAP has named Gurpreet Singh GP, a former Congress MLA from Bassi Pathana, from the Fatehgarh Sahib Lok Sabha seat. He had recently joined the AAP.

Sitting AAP MP from Jalandhar Sushil Rinku has been fielded from the same seat. The former Congress MLA from Jalandhar West had joined the AAP last year and won the Jalandhar parliamentary seat in a bypoll.

Famous Punjabi actor and singer Karamjeet Anmol, who is considered close to Chief Minister Mann, has been fielded from the Faridkot parliamentary seat. During the 2022 assembly polls, he had campaigned along with Mann.

Anmol has acted in many hit films, including 'Carry on Jatta', 'Nikka Zaildar' and 'Muklawa'.

While INDIA bloc members AAP and Congress have a seat-sharing arrangement for the Lok Sabha elections in Delhi, Gujarat and Haryana, the parties are contesting the polls on their own in Punjab.

The opposition alliance which also has parties such as the Trinamool Congress, the Samajwadi Party and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam was formed to take on the BJP in the polls.

The Amritsar seat is currently represented by Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla while Bathinda by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal.

Khadoor Singh, Fatehgarh Sahib, Faridkot and Sangrur seats are currently represented by Congress MPs Jasbir Singh Gill, Amar Singh, Mohammad Sadique and SAD (Amritsar) MP Simranjit Singh Mann respectively.

Patiala MP Preneet Kaur on Thursday joined the BJP in Delhi.