AAP shall win Punjab polls convincingly, says Kejriwal

A repeat of Delhi’s unprecedented mandate to Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab “won’t surprise” him, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Saturday and claimed that the party was on course to capture power in the state.

He said governing was not “rocket science” but one needs “space” to do so. Frequent interference “saps you badly”, he said referring to the tussle between the AAP government and the Centre over areas of jurisdiction, among others. “We are winning Punjab and winning convincingly. We have conducted a number of surveys and I won’t be surprised if the Delhi results are repeated in Punjab. A (chief ministerial) face shall also be declared when time is ripe,” he said. Punjab is slated to go to polls in 2017. AAP has 67 MLAs in the 70-member Delhi Assembly. He said there was “no substance” to reports of him handing over the Delhi CM’s post his deputy Manish Sisodia in case of a victory in Punjab. “This is hust fear of the leaders of Punjab.” 

Responding to a question on whether AAP was in talks with former BJP MP and cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu to project him as the party’s face in Punjab, Kejriwal replied in the negative. “If Navjot Sidhu wants to join AAP then he is very much welcome. But as of now there have been no talks with him. We would welcome him if he comes to the party,” he said.