The Aam Aadmi Party is all set to win the Vidhan Sabha elections in the State of Punjab.
As per the trends reported by the Election Commission of India (ECI) at 2 pm on Thursday (March 10), the Arvind Kejriwal-led party is leading on 84 constituencies and has won an additional 8 seats out of a 117-seat Punjab Legislative Assembly.
The nodal election body reported that the Aam Aadmi Party has clinched a vote share of 42.43% in the elections so far. While the Election Commission of India abbreviated party names such as Indian National Congress, and Bharatiya Janata Party as INC and BJP respectively, the case was different with the winning Aam Aadmi Party.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led party was represented on the ECI website as ‘AAAP’ instead of the commonly used ‘AAP’ abbreviation. However, this is not the first time that the nodal election body has represented the Aam Aadmi Party in this form.
The matter first came to light in February 2020 during the Delhi Vidhan Sabha polls. Aam Aadmi Party, a State party, was abbreviated by the Election Commission of India as ‘AAAP’. An editor at The Times of India, Vishwa Mohan, assumed that it was an oversight on the part of the ECI.
He inquired, “What does AAAP (triple A) mean for AamAadmiParty at Election Commission of India website, showing #DelhiElectionResults and trends?”
What does AAAP (triple A) mean for @AamAadmiParty at Election Commission of India website, showing #DelhiElectionResults and trends? @SpokespersonECI pic.twitter.com/qiZoKRv4xt
— Vishwa Mohan (@vishwamTOI) February 11, 2020
The Spokesperson for the Election Commission of India informed that ‘AAP’ was allotted to another party, prior to the registration of the Aam Aadmi Party in 2013.
“Triple A in the abbreviation is not a typo…. the same abbreviation was used in 2015 Elections also.. as ‘AAP’ was already allotted to another party before Aam Aadmi Party approached ECI for registration in 2013,” the Election Commission of India had clarified then.
Triple A in the abbreviation is not a typo….same abbreviation was used in 2015 Elections also.. as ‘AAP’ was already allotted to another party before Aam Aadmi Party approached ECI for registration in 2013 pic.twitter.com/3rIhQSupEr
— Spokesperson ECI (@SpokespersonECI) February 11, 2020
The ECI further informed that ‘AAP’ was assigned to a party named Awami Aamjan Party, which was registered on January 3, 2011.
Awami Aamjan Party was registered with ECI on 3.1.2011
— Spokesperson ECI (@SpokespersonECI) February 11, 2020
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi may soon meet Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit and submit his resignation as the counting of votes for the Punjab Assembly Elections is underway. Charanjit Singh Channi and Bhagwant Mann were the chief ministerial faces of the Congress and the AAP respectively for the state of Punjab where
Congress is looking at a humiliating defeat in the state where it was in power for five years. According to the Republic TV report, on Thursday, CM Channi arrived at his official residence in Chandigarh and is likely to resign in face of AAP’s massive sweep in the 2022 elections. Channi lost from both the Bhadur and Chamkaur Sahib seats.
