Will Priyanka Gandhi campaign in Punjab?

New Delhi: The Punjab Congress now wants Priyanka Gandhi also to campaign in the upcoming Assembly elections of Punjab. Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh has demanded that Ms Gandhi campaigns in Punjab as it would not only enthuse the cadres but also will work as vote-catcher in the state.

The main reason is that in the last couple of months the Congress has started clawing its way back in the Punjab electoral arena. It has ensured that cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu does not go to the BJP. Incidentally, his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu and hockey player Pargat Singh have already joined the Congress. Navjot Singh Sidhu himself has met Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi. It is just a matter of time before he also comes on board officially.

He also said there was no talk in the Congress about offering deputy chief minister’s post to Mr Sidhu, adding that it was all a media creation. “I will meet Sidhu soon to work out the modalities of his joining the party,” the former Punjab chief minister told mediapersons. He also added that either Mr Sidhu or his wife will get the Assembly ticket as the Congress is following one-family-one-ticket policy.

The Congress has held two meetings of its Central Election Committee which clears Assembly tickets. They have released about 61 tickets for Assembly seats. The second list is expected any time in the coming days. Now the Congress is looking for a force multiplier which Priyanka Gandhi can provide. In the last couple of months there have been several reports about her actively campaigning in the poll-bound state of Uttar Pradesh, though traditionally she has only campaigned in the two constituencies of Amethi and Raebareli. Earlier, there was a proposal to launch Ms Gandhi in Uttar Pradesh, from Allahabad, on the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. That plan was shelved.

Now the final decision on Ms Gandhi campaigning in both the states will be taken by the Congress leadership in the days to come.