Punjab Remote-Controlled By Arvind Kejriwal? What Bhagwant Mann Said

Arvind Kejriwal does not dictate the Punjab government's functioning, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has said, trashing charges that the AAP national convener acts as a "super CM" behind the scenes.

Kejriwal has never interfered in his government's decision-making, the chief minister told NDTV's Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal at the 'Nava Punjab' summit today.

"To be completely honest, as far as decision-making is concerned, he has never interfered even once. If a hundred decisions are taken by the Punjab government, the Punjab Chief Minister takes every single one of them. Arvind Kejriwal does not dictate them," he added.

Nava Punjab Summit | "BJP Will Win 1 Or 2 Seats In Punjab": Bhagwant Mann's Prediction In Writing

He also stressed that the AAP is a national party, and that's why its leadership often meets in Delhi, indicating that's not a reason to make such allegations.

"Sometimes our high command meets, and we take decisions while sitting in Delhi. We have a proper Political Affairs Committee (PAC) and an established organisational framework; we are a political party, not an NGO. Therefore, I believe this is completely a non-issue for the people of Punjab," he added.

Mann pointed out that the BJP often contests elections as a centralised unit without presenting a local face. But that's not how AAP functions. Stating that the AAP goes into polls with a projected face, he said that the narrative that Kejriwal runs Punjab government is baseless.

Nava Punjab Summit | 'If I Drank Day And Night For 14 Years, Would I Be Alive': Bhagwant Mann To NDTV

"We go into elections with a clear face. Voters only cast their ballots if they like the projected leader. If the party had imposed someone else's face onto my leadership, why would the public trust us? Therefore, this narrative is completely baseless and nothing but false propaganda," he said.

He emphasised Delhi and Punjab operate together since both states either currently have or had an AAP government in the past.

"I frequently travel to Gujarat for election campaigning as well. We want to share Punjab's successful welfare schemes with the people of Gujarat. Today, we have five MLAs in Gujarat, one in Doda in Jammu & Kashmir, and four MLAs in Goa. We are a recognised national party, so treat us like one," the chief minister added.