Four Congress ticket seekers demand local candidate in Bathinda
Saturday, 06/04/2019
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BATHINDA: Four Congress leaders, who have applied for Lok Sabha ticket from Bhatinda, on Friday urged the party to field a local candidate on the seat.
Former Punjab legislative assembly deputy speaker Jaswant Singh Phaphrebhaike, former Sardulgarh MLA Ajit Inder Singh Mofar, Congress leaders Gurmeet Singh Khudian and Tehal Singh Sandhu made the demand at a joint press conference here.
Mofar said they had made a representation to the Congress Working Committee, Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and party’s state in-charge Asha Kumari that a leader hailing from Bathinda should be fielded as party candidate in the constituency.
He, however, added that they would not go against the party decision and campaign for the Congress candidate even if he was an outsider.
“We have been working for the Congress for a long time. The party should field one of us or any other local leader,” he said.
“We have conveyed to the party leadership that a local a candidate will be good for the Congress. Anybody, who is not from Bhatinda, might find it tough to remain in touch with the people,” said Mofar.
Punjab finance minister and Bathinda (Urban) MLA Manpreet Singh Badal, who was being seen as a likely Congress candidate, has expressed his unwillingness to contest Lok Sabha polls. With Manpreet opting out of the race, Mofar and other aspirants are trying to step up pressure to bag the party nomination.
