Jalandhar, November 28

State BJP chief Ashwani Sharma today said the party would contest all 117 seats on its own in Punjab.

He stated this while talking to mediapersons on the sidelines of a meeting with party workers ahead of the upcoming elections. On forging a possible alliance, he said: “The BJP will contest the elections on all 117 seats on its own.” Questioning Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s promise to disburse Rs 1,000 to all women in the state, Sharma asked for the source of revenue for the same.

“The Delhi CM has said he will give Rs 1,000 to every woman. How will he do it? There are 74 lakh women in the state. Even if you give Rs 1,000 to each, the amount comes out to Rs 8,400 crore every year. Have you checked how much the state revenue is? Where will the money come from? If you don’t have the money, how will you fulfil the promises?”

Earlier, Sharma met workers from the Jalandhar Central, West and North constituencies. Former minister Manoranjan Kalia and senior leader KD Bhandari were also present. After run-ins with farmers on previous visits to Jalandhar and other cities, the BJP meetings in the city today passed off without opposition from any outfit given PM’s recent decision to withdraw the farm laws. — TNS

Rana to handle punjab affairs

In a change of guard, Pavan Rana has been given the additional charge of handling BJP affairs in Punjab. Rana, currently BJP’s general secretary (organisation) for HP, replaces Dinesh Kumar.