Mann to take oath as Punjab CM in Bhagat Singh's village on Wednesday
New Delhi: A day after the Aam Aadmi Party decimated top guns in Punjab, the state’s chief minister-designate Bhagwant Singh Mann arrived in Delhi to hold discussions with his party chief Arvind Kejriwal and other senior leaders like Manish Sisodia and Raghav Chadha about government formation. Mr Mann is all set to take oath as the new chief minister of Punjab on March 16 in Khatkar Kalan, the ancestral village of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.
“I have invited party convener Arvind Kejriwal for the swearing-in ceremony. Now swearing-in will not be held in 'Mahals' but in villages of freedom fighters. We will take oath in the village of Shaheed Bhagat Singh on March 16 as a tribute to him,” Mr Mann said. He will soon resign from Lok Sabha in order to take charge of his new job as CM Punjab.
Mr Mann touched Mr Kejriwal's feet and sought his blessings as the AAP chief pulled him up and hugged the man of the moment. Mr Kejriwal later tweeted his picture with Mr Mann saying, “My younger brother Bhagwant Mann will take oath as the chief minister of Punjab. Today he came to my house to invite me to the oath-taking ceremony. I am sure as a chief minister, Bhagwant will fulfill every expectation of the people of Punjab.”
The AAP had a landslide win in the Punjab Assembly polls by winning 92 seats to form its government in the state with a three-fourth majority in the 117-member legislative Assembly.
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor congratulated Mr Mann for the feat saying, “Congratulations to Aam Aadmi Party and my erstwhile Lok Sabha benchmate Bhagwant Singh Mann on their resounding victory in Punjab. Two pulmonologists and four eye surgeons among 13 doctors who are now AAP MLAs, the highest ever. Let’s wish them luck implementing their own prescriptions!”
Mr Mann, along with top AAP leadership, is expected to travel to Gujarat to take part in ‘Tiranga Yatras’ in different districts of the state as the party hopes to increase its vote base in other parts of the country. Assembly polls are scheduled in Gujarat in December this year.
