With the stage set for a three-cornered fight for the Punjab Assembly polls, the BJP is yet to finalise its list of candidates.
The Congress still has 40 seats undecided — the delay in selecting candidates could affect electoral prospects of these parties in the elections, that experts and leaders feel are “candidate-centric”.
Selection and early announcement of candidates are advantageous as it gives ample time for campaign, especially in the State elections where the rapport a candidate enjoys with a voter plays an important factor, political leaders say. “In Punjab, the Assembly elections are “candidate-centric” and a delay in announcing the candidates would surely affect the electoral prospects of any party, whether BJP or Congress,” Pramod Kumar, director of the Institute for Development and Communication in Chandigarh, says.
AAP ahead in race
“The BJP has not announced even a single candidate till now. The Congress is yet to take a call on 40 seats. This will only help parties such as the AAP and the Akalis, which have announced their candidates and have started canvassing,” he said.
The new entrant AAP, has fielded candidates for all 112 seats, which the party is contesting.
Its alliance partner, the Lok Insaaf Party of Bains brothers, is contesting the remaining five. The SAD has announced 92 candidates till now.
The party will contest 94 seats out of the total 117, as per the seat-sharing arrangement with the BJP.
Leaders in the Congress and the BJP are apprehensive that the delay in announcing candidates would affect the prospects of the parties.
Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh said the final list would be out by January 9.
He denied that the delay would affect campaigning of the candidates, but admitted that “it was unfortunate that ticket could not be announced six months before the elections, as decided at the Jaipur session of the party.” The party has so far declared candidates for 77 of the total of 117 Assembly seats.
Sources said it seemed difficult that Congress list would be out before January 10 as party’s vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who is on vacation, is likely to return on January 9 and then a meeting would be held to finalise the candidates.
The BJP is likely to announce its list of candidates on January 11.
Sukhbir launches campaign
Stepping up election campaign ahead of the Punjab Assembly polls, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday kicked off campaign in his Jalalabad constituency.
At election meetings, Mr. Badal promised interest free loans of ₹10 lakh to youth to start their own business if the SAD-BJP is returned to power. The SAD-BJP alliance would initiate a drive to provide houses.
