Punjab Elections: Farmer Leader Gurnam Singh Charuni To Announce New Political Party Today

Gurnam Singh Charuni, a farmer leader, is likely to establish a new political party in Chandigarh on Saturday, ahead of the forthcoming Punjab Assembly elections.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party has formed an alliance with former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh's party, the Punjab Lok Congress, to contest the Punjab Assembly elections. 

Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister and Punjab BJP in-charge, confirmed this information to media on Friday, saying, "After 7 rounds of discussions, today I affirm that the BJP and Punjab Lok Congress would contest the next Punjab Assembly elections together.  Topics such as seat sharing will be considered later." Captain Amarinder Singh, former Chief Minister of Punjab, visited Union Minister and Punjab BJP in-charge Gajendra Singh Shekhawat at the latter's residence in Delhi on Friday. 

"We are ready, and we are going to win this election," Punjab Lok Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh told reporters today. The decision on seat sharing will be taken on the seat to seat basis, with winnability being the priority. We are certain that we will win this election. 

"On November 2, former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh resigned from the Congress party and announced the formation of a new political party, the Punjab Lok Congress, ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections." 

Punjab assembly polls will be held in 2022. 

In the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, Congress won an absolute majority in the state by winning 77 seats and ousted the SAD-BJP government after 10 years. 

The Aam Aadmi Party won 20 seats in the 117-member Punjab Legislative Assembly, making it the second-largest party. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) could only manage to win 15 seats while the BJP secured 3 seats.