In yet another setback for the opposition INDIA bloc, the Aam Aadmi Party has said it will announce candidates for all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab, signalling that there will be no alliance with the Congress in the state.

The announcement that the AAP will contest all 13 seats in the state and 1 in Chandigarh was made by party chief Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday. 

The Delhi chief minister’s statement will add to the turmoil in the opposition grouping, which is already reeling from Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s declaration that her party will go solo in West Bengal and is yet to recover from the loss of one of its principal architects, Janata Dal (United) President Nitish Kumar, who switched to the BJP-led NDA last month. 

The situation is unclear in Uttar Pradesh, where there have been signs of an agreement between the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, but there is also strong speculation of another INDIA ally, the Jayant Chaudhary-led Rashtriya Lok Dal, joining hands with the NDA. The buzz has grown stronger since the government announced that the Bharat Ratna will be conferred posthumously on former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, who was Jayant Chaudhary’s grandfather. 

Speaking at a public event on the doorstep delivery of ration in Punjab, Mr Kejriwal said in Hindi, “The Lok Sabha elections will be held in two months… Punjab has 13 seats and Chandigarh has one. In the next 10-15 days, the AAP will announce its candidates for all 14 seats. I request you to give us your blessings like you did (during the Punjab Assembly election) two years ago, and ensure that the AAP sweeps all 14 seats.” 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a special address in Parliament this evening — his last ahead of the general elections — said the 17th Lok Sabha “achieved what generations waited for”.

Addressing the 17 Lok Sabha on the last day of its last session, he said, “These five years were about reform, perform and transform in country… Many reforms, that were game-changers, happened during this year”.

The country is “moving towards a change,” PM Modi said, citing multiple issues from the scrapping of Article 370 and penalising Triple Talaq to hosting the prestigious G20 meet.

The long list, which also included Data protection bill, stringent laws to fight terror, removal of obsolete laws and women’s reservation bill as the achievements of the government — started with the new parliament building and the opening of the parliament library to the public.

“Everyone said we needed a new building. Everyone wanted it, but there was never a decision on it. We decided on it and owing to that we are sitting in the new Parliament today,” PM Modi said.

He also spoke of the focus on marginalised people including transgenders, 17,000 of whom “received identity cards”. “We gave Padma awards to transgenders,” he added.

The high-point, though, was the scrapping of Article 370 that gave Jammu and Kashmir its special status.

“Many generations dreamed of one constitution but this house scrapped Article 370. People who had a role in creating the constitution must be blessing us today.  The people of Kashmir were distant from social justice. Today, we took it to them,” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is addressing the House – his last speech in Parliament before the 2024 elections.

The Lok Sabha today discussed the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. BJP MP Satya Pal Singh initiated the discussion and said that Lord Ram belongs to everyone and not Hindus alone. He also said the construction of the temple was “historic”.

“I am fortunate to get the opportunity to speak about the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and the Pran Pratishtha of Lord Ram on January 22 inside the Parliament,” Mr Singh said in Lok Sabha.

In Rajya Sabha, the lawmakers discussed the “White Paper on the Indian Economy” and its impact on the lives of the people of the country.

The Budget session of Parliament, the last of the 17th Lok Sabha, started with the address by President Droupadi Murmu to the joint sitting of two Houses on January 31. It is scheduled to conclude today.

Here are the live updates on the Parliament’s Budget Session: