Won’t name CM candidate: Kejri

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 3

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will contest the Punjab Assembly elections without announcing its chief ministerial candidate. 

AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said here today that the party would select the Chief Minister from among the MLAs.

He also said that the party would not have an alliance with the Trinamool Congress (TMC). Former MP and state TMC chief Jagmeet Brar said yesterday that he would wait till January 4 for a possible tie-up.

The AAP convener said, “The issue of an alliance with the TMC in Punjab never came up during my meetings with Mamata Banerjee. Jagmeet offered to support us unconditionally and we accepted his offer.”

He made it clear that the party had decided not to change any candidate now, unless there were charges of corruption against the person. “If any candidate fails the test of the three Cs — crime, corruption and character — at any juncture, he will be immediately changed,” Kejriwal added.

He also held meetings with party leaders, including HS Phoolka, and candidates as well as volunteers from Patiala and Rajpura.