Bhagwant Mann, the former stand up comedian and a two-time Lok Sabha MP, will be the next chief minister of Punjab. The ascent to the top post comes after the Aam Aadmi Party swept the Assembly polls under his leadership. With him as the chief ministerial face, AAP unseated the infighting-fraught Congress from power. An emotionally charged Mann during his victory speech ‘forgave’ his opponents who had launched several personal attacks on him during the campaign.
From a stint as a stand up comedian to a neta, one thing that has been common for Mann is the stage. Here are things you must know about the 48-year-old politician who will govern the 2 crore strong state.
>Bhagwant Mann was born on October 17, 1973 in Satauj village of Sangrur district of Punjab.
> Having tasted success at an early age as a satirist and a comedian, Mann shot to national limelight when he appeared as a contestant on reality TV show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge in the early 2000s. One of the judges on the show was Navjot Singh Sidhu, the incumbent Punjab Congress chief.
> Mann made his electoral debut in 2012, contesting the Punjab assembly polls from Lehragaga in Sangrur as a candidate of Manpreet Badal's People's Party. However, he lost the elections.
> When Manpreet Badal merged his party with the Congress, Mann refused to join him and quit the party.
> In 2014, Mann joined the Aam Aadmi Party led by Arvind Kejriwal and contested the Lok Sabha elections from Sangrur. He defeated Shiromani Akali Dal leader Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa by over 2 lakh votes. He was later appointed as the AAP Punjab chief
> On March 1, 2018, Mann resigned as Punjab AAP chief to protest against Kejriwal's apology to Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia to settle a drug-defamation case. However, he withdrew his resignation.
> In 2019, he retained the seat becoming the lone AAP leader to enter the Lok Sabha.
> Bhagwant Mann has repeatedly come under attack from his opponents over his lifestyle. Political rivals have accused him of being an alcoholic
> Bhagwant Mann was declared as the AAP chief ministerial candidate on January 19 by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. The AAP had claimed that the survey to pick the CM face had elicited 2.15 million responses.
> Bhagwant Mann won Dhuri Assembly constituency in Sangrur by more than 58,206 votes.
Punjab Election results LIVE coverage
> In 2019, he retained the seat becoming the lone AAP leader to enter the Lok Sabha.
> Bhagwant Mann has repeatedly come under attack from his opponents over his lifestyle. Political rivals have accused him of being an alcoholic
> Bhagwant Mann was declared as the AAP chief ministerial candidate on January 19 by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. The AAP had claimed that the survey to pick the CM face had elicited 2.15 million responses.
> Bhagwant Mann won Dhuri Assembly constituency in Sangrur by more than 58,206 votes.
Punjab Election results LIVE coverage