New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Punjab Chief Minister-designate Bhagwant Mann met Governor Banwarilal Purohit at the Raj Bhawan in Chandigarh on Saturday to stake claim to form the new government in the state.


He reached the Raj Bhawan in Chandigarh around 10:30 a.m., PTI reported.


ALSO READ | Delhi: 7 People Dead In Fire Incident At Gokulpuri Area, CM Kejriwal To Meet Victims’ Families


“I met the Governor and handed over a letter of support from our MLAs and staked claim to form the government,” Mann said, ANI reported.


Mann will take oath as the Chief Minister of Punjab on March 16 at Khatkar Kalan, the ancestral village of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, in the state’s Nawanshahr district.


“He told me to tell him wherever we want to hold the swearing-in ceremony. It will be held at the native village of Bhagat Singh, Khatkar Kalan, at 12.30 p.m. on March 16,” the Punjab CM-designate said.


“People from houses across Punjab will come to the ceremony, they will also pay tribute to Bhagat Singh. We will have a good cabinet, historic decisions -that were never made before - will be made. So, you will have to wait,” he added.







Earlier on Friday, Mann was elected the AAP’s legislature party leader at a meeting of the party MLAs in Mohali.


“A meeting of the legislature group was held today. We have formally elected Bhagwant Mann as our leader,” AAP leader Aman Arora said on Friday.


The names of several MLAs, including Jeevan Jyot Kaur Harpal Singh Cheema, Aman Arora and Dr Charanjit Singh, are doing the rounds for ministerial positions.


Mann has invited AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his swearing-in ceremony.


Mann and Kejriwal will on Sunday pay obeisance at the Golden Temple, Durgiana Mandir and Sri Ram Tirath Mandir.


Besides, the duo will also take part in a roadshow in Amritsar to thank the voters for the AAP’s splendid win in the Punjab Assembly elections.


This comes as the AAP bagged a historic win in the Punjab polls by bagging 92 seats in the 117-member assembly.


The Congress managed to win just 18 seats, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) bagged two seats.


The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) registered its victory in only three seats, while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) managed to win only one seat.