HP elections: After Punjab win, AAP Eyes Himachal; set to contest on all seats

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh), March 12: Buoyed by its landslide victory in Punjab, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will now contest all 68 seats in the Assembly elections in Himachal Pradesh which are slated to take place later this year. Delhi Health Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Satyendar Jain led a victory procession in Shimla along with the party workers on Saturday and announced that the party will contest the Shimla Municipal Corporation election. "Before the 2022 Assembly polls, the party will contest Shimla Municipal Corporation. Aam Aadmi Party has the mantra to defeat BJP. The Delhi model will be implemented in Himachal. After Punjab, now it's Himachal Pradesh's turn. We will contest elections all 68 seats in Himachal Pradesh in upcoming Assembly elections," the AAP leader said. Notably, AAP registered a whopping win with 92 seats out of a total of 117 seats in the recently concluded Punjab Assembly elections. In terms of election promises, Jain stated that if the AAP is elected, it will provide free energy and water to the people of Himachal Pradesh, as well as education and health services. Also Read | Goa: CM Pramod Sawant tenders resignation; asked to continue as caretaker CM "There should not be anything like free to the public. It is a payback which is given to the public in the form of facilities for the tax which they have paid for," he continued. Jain further said that the organisation has been constituted in all the 68 assembly seats and will now be expanded till the elections. "Education and health will remain the main issues in Himachal. This time the common man will be elected by the people because now people have become upset with the special man. The tradition of the chain of five years to Congress and five years to BJP will be ending in 2022 in the state Assembly elections as AAP has come as an alternate now in the state," the AAP leader said. After the Congress' collapse in the recently concluded Assembly elections in five states, Jain said AAP's competition is the BJP. "Congress cannot defeat BJP. Aam Aadmi Party has the mantra to defeat BJP," he stated. Also Read | Uttar Pradesh: Yogi Adityanath-led BJP govt likely to take oath after Holi -PTC News