AAP-LIP leaders fail to reach conclusion

Shivani Bhakoo

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 17

Senior leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Lok Insaf Party (LIP) failed to reach a desirable conclusion regarding distribution of tickets to respective candidates for the upcoming Municipal Corporation (MC) Ludhiana. The meeting of senior leaders, including Simarjit Singh Bains, Balwinder Bains (LIP), Sukhpal Khaira, Aman Arora and Daljeet Bhola Grewal (AAP) was held here in the evening today, which lasted for about three hours. However, it did not bring fruitful results as there was no consensus on candidates.

Highly placed sources, who attended the meeting, said the AAP leaders had left it to their high command to take a decision on tickets. Another meeting will be held at Chandigarh in the next two days, said the sources.

It is learnt that Bains brothers had made it clear to AAP leaders that they were not going to give any ticket to their party candidate from the East and Atam Nagar constituencies, which was “not agreeable” to AAP leaders.

Besides, it is learnt that for the other four constituencies, too, the Bains brothers had conveyed that the LIP would decide which seats were to be left for the AAP and on which seats its candidates would fight the upcoming MC elections. At this, leaders of the AAP decided to hold another meeting in Chandigarh, which would be attended by Bhagwant Mann also.

Those who attended the meeting also did not deny that if both the parties failed to reach a desirable conclusion, then they might field their candidates separately. “The seat-sharing is possible if it is done in a justified manner, else both may field their own candidates separately,” said a leader, who attended the meeting.