AAP DECLARES 6 CANDIDATES

New Delhi, March 2: Ending months of speculation regarding an alliance with the Congress for the upcoming general elections, the Aam Aadmi Party Saturday declared its candidates for Lok Sabha six seats in Delhi and accused the grand old party of turning down its proposal for a tie-up.

While announcing the names of party candidates in the six seats, Delhi AAP convener Gopal Rai, however, hinted that a window was still open for firming up an alliance as the party believed that there should be single opposition candidate against the BJP in every seat for the upcoming polls.

The six candidates were earlier appointed as the party's in-charges for the parliamentary constituencies in the national capital.

AAP national convener and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said the party’s seventh candidate will be announced soon. “Congratul-ations and best wishes. Seventh candidate will be announced soon. Delhiites will have full statehood this time,” he tweeted.

Addressing a press conference, Mr Rai announced AAP leader Atishi as candidate from east Delhi, Guggan Singh from northwest Delhi, Raghav Chadha from south, Dilip Pandey from northeast, Pankaj Gupta from Chandni Chowk and Brijesh Goyal from New Delhi seat. The candidate for west Delhi will be announced soon, he said.

During a meeting of ‘mahagathbandhan’ (grand alliance) leaders at NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s residence last month, Congress president Rahul Gandhi had refused a proposal for a tie-up between his party and the AAP citing opposition from the grand old party’s Delhi unit leaders, Mr Rai claimed. The Delhi Congress, in its meeting on Friday, attended by its president Sheila Dikshit, had decided to convey to the party that it was against any alliance with the AAP in Delhi.