Captain Amarinder Singh to see election results on his birthday
CHANDIGARH: On March 11, the day when assembly election results will be declared, Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh will either have reason to hold the grandest birthday bash ever at the Moti Bagh Palace in Patiala or it will be the most forgettable day of his life. As fate would have it, March 11happens to be his 75th birthday .A grand birthday bash had been organized for Amarinder in 2012 as that was the first time in more than 150 years that a member of the Patiala royal family had crossed the ripe age of 70. At the time, most people had expected Congress to sweep the election and the birthday party was supposed to celebrate the electoral win as well.
However, in a stunning reversal, the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP combine shocked everyone and won a second term just a couple of days before Amarinder’s birthday . despite the sulk in the Congress, a grand party was organized at a relative’s farmhouse in Delhi.
Winning the 2017 election is even more crucial for Amarinder as he has said more than once that this will be his last election after which he would like to hand over charge of the party in Punjab to a younger generation of leaders. For the last six months he has been increasingly seen with his grandson Nirvan who many expect will take over the political legacy of the erstwhile roy al family .
Although Amarinder hasn’t said it in as many words, close aides say he would like to end his last innings in politics with a win.”Welcome the Election Commission‘s announcement of the elections dates. We are ready ,” Amarinder cautiously tweeted. For a change, he chose not to attack his opponents with whom he has had some caustic exchanges in recent days.
Punjab is seen as the best bet for Congress to win a state in the midst of the BJP surge, but the fact remains that the Grand Old Party hasn’t officially declared Amarinder as the chief ministerial candidate for the polls. This despite the fact that, poll strategist Prashant Kishor has designed the entire campaign around him. AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal has used this to attack Amarinder, claiming that the former chief minister is being used to keep the seat warm for cricketer-turnedpolitician Navjot Singh Sidhu.
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Navjot Singh Sidhu, not his wife, to contest from Amritsar (East)
CHANDIGARH: Putting an end to speculations, the Congress confirmed on Thursday said that cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu will contest in the upcoming Punjab assembly elections as a party nominee.”Navjot Singh Sidhu will contest from the constituency of his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu,” said Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh while talking to mediapersons in Delhi on Thursday.”Sidhu will contest from Amritsar (East) seat as a Congress nominee,” he added.
Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh seeks dismissal of Akali govt
CHANDIGARH: Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh has demanded immediate dismissal of the Badal government, saying it had been “completely exposed in the Fazilka jail incident, where a known henchman of home minister Sukhbir Singh Badal was caught holding a kangaroo court on Wednesday along with two dozen other Akali-linked criminals”.
Amarinder demanded imposition of the President’s rule to hold free and fair elections in the state. He alleged that the incident had thoroughly exposed the complicity of the Badals and their associates in the rampant crime mafia in the state. He also called for an independent probe by a central agency.
“Given his close links with Sukhbir, the main culprit in the case, Shiv Lal Doda, was clearly acting as the former’s henchman and holding a proxy meeting for the home minister in the jail when he was caught, along with about two dozen others known to have close links with the Akalis,” said Amarinder. tnn
Congress gets support of Indian ex-servicemen movement in Punjab election