Cong brings back old war horse Amarinder
22 March 2014 11:51 PM GMT
Announcing its fifth list on Friday evening, the Congress fielded former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh against senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arun Jaitley from Amritsar constituency for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Singh had earlier expressed that he was not ready to take on Jaitley from Amritsar. He said, ‘I had told Congress president Sonia Gandhi that I would like to concentrate on my own seat in Patiala and focus on campaigning in Punjab. But if the Congress chief wants me to contest the general elections from Amritsar then I will do so.’ The Congress leader asserted that the situation was in favour of the Congress in Punjab. ‘There is no anti-incumbency against Congress in Punjab,’ he added.
On Thursday, Amarinder Singh had said that he was not interested in fighting the Lok Sabha elections from Amritsar. But now he has agreed to contest against Jaitley. The BJP had on Saturday announced the candidature of Jaitley from the seat replacing its sitting MP Navjot Singh Sidhu.
Senior party leader and former information and broadcasting minister Ambika Soni will contest from Anandpur Sahib Lok Sabha seat of Punjab replacing sitting party MP Ravneet Singh Bittu. Soni is also a loyalist and confidant of the Gandhi family. She had quit her cabinet post to work for the party last year.
The announcement of 26 candidates in this list was made by party general secretary Madhusudan Mistry at a media briefing held in the Capital.
Singh had earlier expressed that he was not ready to take on Jaitley from Amritsar. He said, ‘I had told Congress president Sonia Gandhi that I would like to concentrate on my own seat in Patiala and focus on campaigning in Punjab. But if the Congress chief wants me to contest the general elections from Amritsar then I will do so.’ The Congress leader asserted that the situation was in favour of the Congress in Punjab. ‘There is no anti-incumbency against Congress in Punjab,’ he added.
On Thursday, Amarinder Singh had said that he was not interested in fighting the Lok Sabha elections from Amritsar. But now he has agreed to contest against Jaitley. The BJP had on Saturday announced the candidature of Jaitley from the seat replacing its sitting MP Navjot Singh Sidhu.
Senior party leader and former information and broadcasting minister Ambika Soni will contest from Anandpur Sahib Lok Sabha seat of Punjab replacing sitting party MP Ravneet Singh Bittu. Soni is also a loyalist and confidant of the Gandhi family. She had quit her cabinet post to work for the party last year.
The announcement of 26 candidates in this list was made by party general secretary Madhusudan Mistry at a media briefing held in the Capital.
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