In a major statement, Arvind Kejriwal announced that there will be no alliance with INDIA bloc in Punjab and Chandigarh, saying that AAP will be contesting all the seats in Punjab by itself. There are 13 Lok Sabha seats up for grabs from Punjab and 1 from Chandigarh. The Delhi CM and his Punjab Counterpart announced that aspiring candidates for all the seats in the coming 14-15 days. They further announced their ambitions for a clean sweep victory on all 14 seats in this year’s elections. But the question arises as to why Kejriwal decided against the alliance in the state. Here are possible reasons as to why that may be:
Numerous surveys suggest that the Aam Aadmi Party has a clear edge in the region of Punjab. AAP is popular among the voter demographic of Punjab and it can be considered to be standing in a favourable perspective of the Punjab voters. This was further evident by the fact that AAP won the by-elections in Jalandhar. AAP also took control from the Captain Amrinder Singh’s Congress led government in 2022.
The surveys also suggested that AAP will experience a more resounding victory in the upcoming elections if it decides to contest the elections alone as the main beneficiary of the alliance would have been Congress. Political experts say that in case of an alliance, Congress’ votebank would not have shifted to that of AAP but AAP’s votebank would have. Experts say that this might be due to the controversies that have surrounded the majority of Congress leaders. Most prominent leaders to be probed by the Vigilance Bureau for corruption include ex-deputy CM OP soni, ex Forest Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, ex-minister of food Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Ex-MLA Sundarsham Arora among others.
Another reason is that Congress is the main opposition of AAP in Punjab. BJP does not have a strong foothold in the state of Punjab. They had contested the 2019 elections in coalition with the Akali Dal. But surveys suggest that the Akali’s popularity with the Punjabi voters has decreased since 2019, while BJP’s approval nearly doubled. But even with an increase in popularity, AAP and Congress were miles ahead in the public’s approval, essentially making the elections a two-horse race in Punjab.
But with an alliance between the BJP and Akali Dal likely on the cards, it could put them in as a strong third contender for the elections, throwing a spanner in the works for AAP and Congress. However, whether AAP will face strong opposition from parties other than Congress remains to be seen.