AAP’s central leaders skip Baisakhi date with Punjab

BATHINDA: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) central leadership will give the Baisakhi celebrations in Punjab’s Talwandi Sabo a miss on April 13. The AAP’s Punjab leadership cited “hectic campaigning” for the Delhi municipal elections for no central leader attending the public meeting at Talwandi Sabo.

“They (the central leaders) are busy with the Delhi campaign for the April 22 elections. But the entire state leadership, including all 20 MLAs and the Bains brothers, will be present,” said Talwandi Sabo AAP MLA Baljinder Kaur, who is presiding over the preparations for the public gathering. Bholath AAP MLA Sukhpal Khaira, however, said, “The Delhi leadership should come to the event as it’s an occasion to rejuvenate party cadres after the poll defeat.”

AAP MLAs from the Bathinda-Mansa region sounded upbeat. “We are enthusiastic about the event as voters gave us five of the nine assembly seats in the Bathinda parliamentary constituency. It’s our duty to sustain the AAP presence in the region,” said Mansa MLA Nazar Singh Mansahia. “We hope people will respond like they did at Muktsar’s Maghi Mela,” he said.

‘DISILLUSIONED’

Jarnail Singh, dubbed Punjab da sher (Lion of Punjab) by the AAP in the run-up to the assembly elections, will not attend the celebrations either.

“I am disillusioned. I’m not in touch with any AAP leader of Punjab after the February elections. I have certain family commitments and have not been campaigning for the Delhi municipal elections,” he said.

Jarnail was the Rajouri Garden AAP MLA before he quit to take on the chief ministerial candidates of the Shiromani Akali Dal and the Congress in Punjab only to suffer a humiliating defeat.