Punjab assembly election 2017: Amarinder Singh's journey from army to politics

Amarinder Singh has challenged Parkash Singh Badal and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal to contest the elections against him.

Chandigarh, Jan 17: With just days left for the Punjab assembly elections, state Congress chief Capt. Singh has been campaigning vigorously across the state. Singh has challenged Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal to contest the elections against him.

Singh had even hit out at the BJP-SAD alliance in the state and blamed SAD for the water scarcity in Punjab.

Here is a look at his profile:

Date and place of birth: Born on March 11, 1942 in Patiala

Education: Singh attended the Lawrence School Sanawar and The Doon School in Dehradhun. He graduated from the NDA following which he served in the Army.

Political career:

Singh was inducted in the Congress by his friend Rajiv Gandhi and was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 1980.

• He resigned from the Congress as well as the Parliament in 1984 against the actions of the army during Operation Blue Star.
• He then joined the Shiromani Akali Dal and was elected to the state legislature from the Talwandi Sabo seat.
• Singh in 1992 broke away from SAD and formed a splinter group named Shiromani Akali Dal (Panthic) which later merged with the Congress.
• Singh has served as the chief minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007.

Controversies:

Singh was embroiled in a controversy after his son was pulled up by the court for lying to the income tax department about his foreign bank accounts.