NDTV Exclusive: "BJP Will Win 1 Or 2 Seats In Punjab": Bhagwant Mann's Prediction In Writing

The BJP and the Congress will barely cross the threshold of 10 seats in the 2027 assembly elections in Punjab, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann predicted today. And in that race, the Congress will perform better than the BJP, he implied. 

In an interview with NDTV CEO and Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal today, Mann even gave it in writing, signing the paper he wrote his prediction on. 

The BJP, Mann predicted, will win only one or two seats in the Pathankot area.

As for the Congress, "They will be reduced to a single-digit number," he said. 

The Congress, he said, will win one to nine seats. "Anything lower than that, and their top leadership will be completely wiped out," he added.

Asked to clarify the score of the BJP -- which recently won a historic victory in Bengal -- and his reason for giving it, Mann said: "Why do I feel it will turn out this way? Because I live among the people. Write this down and save it."

Punjab was the second state Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party won in 2022, sweeping 92 of the 117 assembly seats. The Congress, which had won a commanding 77 seats in the 2017 Punjab elections -- was reduced to just 18 seats. Many of its leaders had faced crushing deafeats including then Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, who contested and lost from two seats, Chamkaur Sahib and Bhadaur.

The BJP won two seats. 

Punjab, in fact, has been one of the handful of states where the BJP has so far been unable to make much headway on its own. It has been dependent on its regional ally Shiromani Akali Dal and has been part of the ruling alliance. 

But the SAD has been on a dry patch for a decade, winning only three seats in 2022, down by 12 from their 2017 score.

This time, asked about how many seats the SAD will win, Mann said "Zero".