Chandigarh: In Punjab, which goes to polls next year, the Congress has gained a Badal.
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal's estranged nephew Manpreet Badal, a former minister, has merged his four-year-old party with the Congress after meeting Rahul Gandhi.
He said his party had agreed to the tie-up without conditions and would not accept any position for now. "To take the agenda of Punjab forward, Congress is a good platform, the right platform and the only platform that was available," he said, flanked by Congress leaders including recently appointed chief Amarinder Singh.
A year later, he formed the People's Party of Punjab, which debuted in the 2012 assembly polls but failed to make a mark. Manpreet Badal contested two seats but lost both.
With Manpreet Badal on board, the Congress hopes to score in Badal strongholds in next year's assembly polls. In the national election last year, the party fielded Manpreet Badal in Bathinda against his sister-in-law Harsimrat Kaur, but lost.
On Thursday, Mr Kejriwal launched his party's campaign in Muktsar, known to be a Badal stronghold. AAP won four seats in Punjab in its debut national election and believes it has a fighting chance to make it big in the 2017 polls.
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal's estranged nephew Manpreet Badal, a former minister, has merged his four-year-old party with the Congress after meeting Rahul Gandhi.
He said his party had agreed to the tie-up without conditions and would not accept any position for now. "To take the agenda of Punjab forward, Congress is a good platform, the right platform and the only platform that was available," he said, flanked by Congress leaders including recently appointed chief Amarinder Singh.
A year later, he formed the People's Party of Punjab, which debuted in the 2012 assembly polls but failed to make a mark. Manpreet Badal contested two seats but lost both.
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With Manpreet Badal on board, the Congress hopes to score in Badal strongholds in next year's assembly polls. In the national election last year, the party fielded Manpreet Badal in Bathinda against his sister-in-law Harsimrat Kaur, but lost.
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On Thursday, Mr Kejriwal launched his party's campaign in Muktsar, known to be a Badal stronghold. AAP won four seats in Punjab in its debut national election and believes it has a fighting chance to make it big in the 2017 polls.
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