Punjab elections 2022: Amarinder Singh to contest from Patiala, announces first list of candidates list

Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress (PLC) on Sunday released the first list of 22 candidates for upcoming assembly elections in the state. The former CM will contest from Patiala assembly seat, under his newly formed party Punjab Lok Congress (PLC).

It is reported that the second list is likely to be released in two days. Singh said out of 22 candidates, 2 are from Majha, 3 from Doaba and 17 from Malwa region. 

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Presently, PLC got 37 of the 117 seats in the state as part of its alliance with the BJP and SAD (Sanyukt), with discussions still in progress on possibly another five seats for the party.

Of the 37 seats, the PLC has got the maximum of 26 are from the Malwa region. 

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Meanwhile, the former CM had single-handedly transformed this region into a game-changer for the Congress in the 2007 polls with his ground-breaking Water Termination Act of 2004 as well as the introduction of BT cotton.

Also, Amarinder has strong family ties with the region, which used to be part of the erstwhile royal estate of Patiala. The PLC’s share in seat allocation for the Majha region currently stands at 7, while the Doaba region accounts for four seats.

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The Election Commission of India rescheduled Punjab’s assembly elections to February 20, 2022. The polls were earlier set for February 14 but were moved further in light of Guru Ravidas Jayanti. The results will be announced on March 10.