Punjab Newsline | Chandigarh
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has released its first list of 40 candidates for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, renominating all its sitting MLAs.
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann will once again contest from the Dhuri Assembly constituency. In another significant announcement, the party has fielded jailed minister Sanjeev Arora from Ludhiana West.
However, the name of Finance Minister Harpal Cheema is missing from the first list. Questions had reportedly been raised over his role in connection with the Gulzar suicide case in Toorbanjara village of Sangrur.
The tenure of the present Punjab Legislative Assembly is scheduled to end in March 2027, and elections are expected to be held before that. Punjab has a total of 117 Assembly seats, of which the AAP currently holds 94.
The party had appointed new constituency in-charges in 19 Assembly segments. Interestingly, seven of these constituencies are represented by sitting AAP MLAs. Despite this, none of the newly appointed constituency in-charges has found a place in the first list of candidates.
Sanjeev Arora, a former minister and AAP leader, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on May 9, 2026, in an alleged money laundering case involving more than Rs 100 crore. He is currently lodged in Gurugram jail.
Meanwhile, reacting to the announcement of his candidature, Kotkapura MLA and Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan said that the party had no competition when it came to performance.
"There is no competition for us when it comes to work. A campaign of misinformation is being spread against us," Sandhwan said.
