punjab

Updated: Dec 18, 2017 00:19 IST

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which emerged as a distant opposition after making tall claims in the assembly polls early this year, ended the year too with disappointment. It could not win any seat in the municipal corporations of Jalandhar, Amritsar and Patiala. Yet, the party’s leaders are happy that their candidates were in fray despite it being known that the ruling party, Congress in this case, is preferred in civic polls.

AAP leaders said the party has started making leaders at mohalla level and “actually got into the contest now”. It had become the principal opposition after the Vidhan Sabha poll results in March, winning 20 seats of 117. In the civic polls, it contested 149 wards of 225 in the three corporations. The party supported some independent candidates in the 29 municipal councils and notified area committees, but the results were far from impressive.

State unit president Bhagwant Mann said he is glad that 149 candidates came forward to contest “despite threats from the ruling party”. “In the future, the party will contest block samiti, zila parishad and gram panchayat polls too.” “It is shameful that Congress cadres resorted to violence and rigging in CM’s home town Patiala. Was he not confident that people would vote for them?” asked Mann. He said the Congress government now “can’t make excuses for not carrying development”, as they have “their men from top to bottom”.

Comparing the AAP performance with the Shiromani Akali Dal, Mann said, “We are a five-year-old party and have performed better than a 97-year-old party.” Referring to Goraya and Cheema, AAP state co-president Aman Arora said, “In a number of municipal councils, candidates supported by us have won or are on second position... You can’t fight the might of the government, especially when it is bent upon manipulating the entire poll process.”

(Story has been updated)