Chandigarh: The Aam Aadmi Party Chief Arvind Kejriwal, has said on Wednesday that the Chief Ministerial Candidate name of his party will be announced next week. This announcement has a major twist. He states that the people will be choosing the candidate for chief ministerial post. The candidate for the post will be announced on the basis of tele-voting. The party has asked voters to dial 7074870748 to name their choice.
The phone line is jammed already, claimed AAP in a tweet.
Kejriwal said the law and order situation in Punjab has been deteriorating and that was reflected by the incidents of sacrilege, Ludhiana bomb blast and the breach in the security perimeter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He also said when the AAP forms the government in Punjab all these issues will be addressed. He was speaking to reporters at the Chandigarh airport after arriving in the state on a two-day visit.
AAP chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said he would name his party’s Punjab face on January 17 based on tele-voting by the people.
“This is the first time a party is letting the public choose their own Chief Minister,” he said.
“The people of Punjab can call, WhatsApp or SMS on 7074870748 and name their choice. The phone number will be open till 5 PM on Jan 17. We will go through the responses and based on the feedback, AAP will select its Chief Minister candidate,” Mr Kejriwal told reporters.
The party has also launched a poster which reads as, “Janta chunegi apna CM (People will choose their Chief Minister). Call 7074870748,” it says.
This initiative of AAP is hugely disappointing for Bhagwant Mann, the AAP MP who has nursed his chief ministerial ambitions for long and has been waiting for the party to name him as their face for the Punjab election on February 14.
Kejriwal tackled questions on Mann.
“Bhagwant Mann is very dear to me. He is my chhota bhai (younger brother). He is the biggest leader of AAP. I was also saying he should be the Chief Minister candidate. But then he said no…the people must decide,” said the Delhi Chief Minister.
Asked whether he was also among the options before voters, he said: “I am not in the race.”
Further he has alleged that now Channi is unable to handle law and order. “The Channi government is unable to handle law and order. People are very scared. When our govt comes to power we assure that we will take steps to improve law and order. We will also ensure that all those guilty of previous incidents of sacrilege are also punished,” he added.
The AAP has already announced its candidates for 109 of the 117 Assembly seats in Punjab.
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