Chandigarh: Even as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its supremo Arvind Kejriwal faced a humiliating drubbing in the Delhi assembly polls Saturday, all eyes now seem to turn to the only other AAP-ruled state – Punjab - where the party came to power with a landslide win of 92 seats out of total 117 in 2022.

However, even though it is being seen as a big win for the BJP in Delhi, it is the Congress which smells a chance to beat the chief minister Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government in Punjab, despite Congress' own miserable performance in the national capital. Congress is the principal opposition party in Punjab.

While the AAP had swept the 2022 Punjab assembly elections with a stunning victory with 92 seats out of the total 117 seats, the Congress could win only 18 seats and other rival parties, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) could only win three and BJP, two seats. However, it was the bitter bad blood within Congress which was said to be one of the main reasons for the Congress' debacle.

While SAD is currently facing bickering within and BJP still struggling to consolidate its base since SAD parted its way from the saffron party during the farmer stir in 2021.

The Congress, however, maintained its strong resistance against AAP and opposed any alliance with AAP despite the talks of trucks between the two parties (in INDIA bloc) elsewhere.

However, the focus which would now shift to Punjab would also witness efforts of the saffron party to give a daunting challenge to trio rivals – AAP, Congress and SAD – giving its increasing sway after Delhi win.

However, the Congress senior leaders including leader of opposition (LoP) Partap Singh Bajwa has already launched fresh attack on Mann stating that he had failed to secure even a single seat out of 12 seats for AAP where he had campaigned in Delhi. These seats were those from where AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal and former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia fought.

Likewise, the Congress MP from Gurdaspur, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, also claimed that now the AAP would also collapse in Punjab after its rout in Delhi. He went on to add that he saw midterm polls in Punjab as many AAP MLAs were reportedly ready to jump ship.