AAP tickets sold for money in Punjab: Sucha Singh Chhotepur

Chandigarh: Sacked as the Punjab unit chief over corruption charges, AAP leader Sucha Singh Chhotepur on Tuesday accused the party's Delhi leadership of selling tickets for the Punjab assembly polls to undeserving candidates for crores of rupees.

Chhotepur alleged that the AAP central leadership did not allow any Punjab leader to take the limelight in the party as Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal wanted to become the Punjab Chief Minister.

Starting his 'Parivartan Yatra' from Gurdaspur district, Chhotepur said he was going to AAP volunteers and people to highlight the injustice done to him and people of Punjab by AAP leaders in Delhi.

"I have worked day and night for AAP. I spent funds from my side. I was not given any details of crores of rupees raised from funding raising in Punjab and NRIs. Crores of rupees were sent by NRIs. All money taken away by AAP leaders in Delhi. The party did not even appoint a treasurer for Punjab," Chhotepur told supporters in Gurdaspur, 250 km from here.

"The AAP has no bank account in Punjab. All funding was going to Delhi and there was no account of that. People have contributed from Rs 10,000 to Rs 20 lakh for this party. There is no account of that," he said.

Chhotepur, removed as the AAP Punjab convener on August 26 following allegations of taking money from a AAP supporter, said he had wanted to highlight a number of wrong things happening in the AAP Punjab unit to Kejriwal.

"I was not given time to meet Kejriwal for six months," Chhotepur said.

"Tickets were given to wrong people by charging Rs 2 to 2.5 crore," he alleged.

"My party has damaged me politically. I have got great response from volunteers, supporters after the conspiracy against me by AAP leaders."

"The Akali Dal has ruined Punjab. People had hope from AAP. What Kejriwal has done, people of Punjab are feeling cheated," he added.

The AAP is posing a political challenge to the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP alliance, which has been in power in Punjab since 2007, and the opposition Congress for the assembly polls to be held in Punjab early next year.