CHANDIGARH: The second list of 31 candidates for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections was released by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today, naming two sitting Members of Parliament, re-nominating two sitting MLAs while dropping seven others, including a sitting Cabinet minister and two former ministers.
The Member of Parliament from Hoshiarpur, Raj Kumar Chabbewal, will contest from Phagwara, while Member of Parliament Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer from Sangrur will contest from Barnala.
Meanwhile, State Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian has been replaced in Lambi by his nephew, Randhir Singh Dhira. Besides Khudian, who in 2022 defeated five-time former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, a few months ago, he had a showdown with Punjab AAP in-charge Manish Sisodia in a party meeting.
While two sitting MLAs, Saravjit Kaur Manuke from Jagraon and Amandeep Singh Goldy Musafir from Balluana, have been renominated, former minister Laljit Singh Bhullar has also lost his ticket from Patti, where the party has nominated Jaskanwar Singh Gill, alias Jassa Patti.
Other MLAs dropped are former minister Anmol Gagan Mann from Kharar, in whose place Parminder Singh Goldy has been given the ticket; Amit Rattan Kotfatta from Bathinda Rural, where Gopal Singh has been given the ticket; Raman Arora from Jalandhar (Central), whom Nitin Kohli replaces; and Charanjit Singh from Chamkaur Sahib, where Jasvir Singh Garhi has been fielded in his place.
The party has fielded former Amritsar mayor Karamjit Singh Rintu from Amritsar North, after sitting MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap resigned last week. From Shutrana, former Shiromani Akali Dal MLA Varinder Kaur Loomba has been nominated in place of Kulwant Singh Bazigar.
In a first for the party, a father-son duo has been nominated. While Dr Chabbewal has been fielded from Phagwara, his son Ishank Kumar Chabbewal was given a ticket from Chabbewal in the first list announced on October 31. As in the first list, no Cabinet minister figures in this list either.
The second list also reflects the party’s reliance on halqa in-charges, several of whom have been rewarded with tickets. These include Parminder Singh Goldy from Kharar, Jaskanwar Singh Gill from Patti, Gopal Singh from Bathinda Rural and Jasvir Singh Garhi from Chamkaur Sahib.
The second list includes four women candidates. Besides Varinder Kaur Loomba, the other three women candidates are Saravjit Kaur Manuke from Jagraon, Sonia Mann from Rajasansi and Harjot Kaur Lohtia from Phillaur.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said the AAP was going back to the people, seeking a fresh mandate on the basis of its development work and incentives offered to all sections of society.
These included 300 units of free electricity for domestic consumers, financial assistance for women and free pilgrimage for people aged above 50. He added that the party's sole criterion for selecting candidates was their winnability, as assessed through constituency-wise surveys.
"Today, there was a discussion on tickets for the Punjab elections in the PAC meeting. The feedback received in the survey reports was deliberated upon throughout the day," the party said in a statement.
The announcement was issued by AAP National Secretary Pankaj Kumar Gupta. With the latest additions, the party has declared candidates for 71 of Punjab's 117 Assembly constituencies. The party still has to announce nominees for the remaining 46 seats. It had announced its first list of 40 nominees on October 31.
Meanwhile, former Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar dared the ruling Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab to field its supremo Arvind Kejriwal or state in-charge Manish Sisodia in the upcoming polls, saying he was ready to take them on. Jakhar said that he had no hesitation in contesting against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann from Dhuri if the BJP so decided.