Panaji, Sep 16 (PTI) Aam Aadmi Party convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said the Congress’s criticism of the AAP’s alliance with a regional outfit in Goa for the 2027 Assembly polls shows the Grand Old Party has already conceded defeat in Punjab where elections are also due early next year.
The AAP and Goa Forward Party (GFP) announced an alliance under the banner of ‘Goa First’ on September 13 for the upcoming Assembly polls in the coastal state.
Goa Congress president Girish Chodankar has dubbed the AAP-GFP alliance as an “exchange offer” with the BJP, which rules the tiny tourist state. Chodankar has claimed the tie-up was part of an arrangement under which the BJP would support the AAP in Punjab, while the Kejriwal-led party would support the saffron outfit in Goa.
The AAP is currently the governing party in the northern state.
Reacting to Chodankar’s statements over the tie-up between the two Opposition parties, Kejriwal wrote on his X handle, “Congress concedes defeat in Punjab.” Chodankar has maintained the ‘Goa First’ alliance has gone against the common aspirations of the people of Goa.
“The people of Goa wanted a larger alliance, but it looks like they are playing into the BJP’s hands. The Aam Aadmi Party must have made an exchange offer that in Punjab, the BJP will support the AAP to win polls, and in Goa, the Aam Aadmi Party will support the BJP in forming the next government,” Chodankar told PTI on Tuesday.
He further claimed the people of Goa would reject the alliance and said it would be the “last election” for both the AAP and GFP in the coastal state.
The AAP and GFP have projected their alliance as a non-BJP, non-Congress alternative and said they would oppose the practice of political defections.
Goa and Punjab are among states were Assembly elections are due in early 2027. PTI RPS RSY
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.