Cong secret ballot route to pick LS candidates

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 17

The Punjab Congress, in the first meeting of the State Election Committee held today, resorted to secret ballot to elicit preference on the names of the ticket applicants for the Lok Sabha polls.

In the meeting attended by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, former CM Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, former Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Partap Bajwa among others, it was decided to send a list of the shortlisted candidates for all 13 seats to the party president for final selection.

The members were given a docket of the ticket seekers and were asked to pick in order of preference before putting it back in a sealed cover. “No one wants other to reveal their preference of candidates,” said a member.

AICC secretary incharge of Punjab affairs Asha Kumari said 180 applications were received for 13 constituencies. There would be no bar on sitting MLAs from contesting these polls, although it was clarified that the same should be considered only as an exceptional case.

Meanwhile, concerns over poor deliverance on various fronts by the state government echoed in a meeting of the state unit’s Coordination Committee, attended by Asha Kumari and other senior leaders.

The matter was raised days after PPCC chief Sunil Jakhar taking it up with Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Delhi.