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Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today laughed off a question on whether he may be replaced in the top post in the aftermath of AAP's Delhi debacle and party leader Arvind Kejriwal's defeat in his seat. Mr Mann spoke to the media after an AAP meeting in Delhi attended by Mr Kejriwal, senior leader Manish Sisodia and all Punjab MLAs, besides other key party functionaries.
The meeting of Punjab MLAs at the national capital's Kapurthala House had attracted attention, with a senior BJP leader claiming that Mr Kejriwal was trying to replace Mr Mann as Chief Minister. Manjinder Singh Sirsa, newly elected MLA from Rajouri Garden, claimed in a video that the AAP national convener was trying to remove Mr Mann by branding him "incompetent".
"After losing the Delhi elections, Arvind Kejriwal has called a meeting of Punjab MLAs in Delhi. Reports suggest that he is trying to remove @BhagwantMann Ji from the CM post by branding him as incompetent. He failed to fulfill his promise of giving Rs 1,000 to women, was unsuccessful in curbing drug abuse and has worsened Punjab's situation. Now, he wants to put all failure on Bhagwant Mann. He is making AAP Punjab MLAs say that Kejriwal is a 'good man' and should be made Chief Minister instead," he said.
When Mr Mann was asked about this claim, he smiled and said, "Let them say". He also assured that the Punjab government would fulfill its promise of giving Rs 1,000 every month to women.
The Chief Minister also responded to Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa's claim that more than 20 AAP MLAs in Punjab are in touch with him. "Partap Bajwa has been saying this for nearly three years. Ask him to count the number of (Congress) MLAs in Delhi for the third time," he said, mocking the Congress for its hat-trick of scoring zero seats in the Delhi election.
He was also asked about Mr Bajwa's claims that he may quit AAP. "Let them talk. We have built this party with our blood and sweat. Actually, they have a culture of switching sides... One of their leaders was beating a dhol to celebrate AAP's defeat. Someone asked him if he was celebrating Congress's zero score," he said.
The AAP has 93 MLAs and the Congress 16 in the 117-member Punjab Assembly.
Mr Mann also spoke about what was discussed in today's meeting. He said Mr Kejriwal thanked AAP workers for grassroots work in the party's Delhi campaign. He said AAP worked a lot in Delhi but wins and losses are part of politics. "We accept the people's mandate in Delhi, now we plan to make Punjab a model state," he said. Mr Mann said all the MLAs wanted to meet Mr Kejriwal, so they came to Delhi for the meeting.
News Agency also spoke to Ludhiana Central MLA Ashok Prashar about what was discussed at the meeting. "In the meeting, Mr Kejriwal told us we must take the party forward in Punjab. There will be no change in Punjab," he said. Asked about the Congress's claim about AAP MLAs, he said, "The Congress must take care, what if the few they have come to us."