Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the party would avoid giving ticket to people “with [a] criminal record or negative image,” during the coming Assembly election in the State.
Talking to reporters after addressing a series of meetings with Congress workers and leaders here, Mr. Gandhi said though there was no special formula for ticket distribution, it should be carried out early and the youth should be given priority.
“We could successfully identify the candidates with the winning potential in Karnataka. We have [only] one formula for our governments. They should be pro-people and perform for people’s welfare. The work done in Rajasthan is quite impressive.”
The Nehru-Gandhi family scion said his two-day interactions, in Bikaner and Jaipur, with Congress activists and office-bearers of front organisations was fruitful and would help strengthen the party structure. He met members of 25 District Congress Committees and elected Panchayati Raj representatives earlier in the day.
Slams Opposition
Mr. Gandhi said he was sad that the Bharatiya Janata Party and other Opposition parties had prevented the passage of the Food Security Bill in Parliament: “It is indeed depressing that the BJP and the Opposition parties are depriving the people of the benefit of food security for political reasons.”
