Chandigarh, January 9
Punjab is in the elections mode. Barring the Congress and the BJP, almost all other political parties have announced their candidates. The Bahujan Samaj Party( BSP) headed by Ms Mayawati was the first to announce the candidates. It was followed by the Left parties, the CPI, the CPM and the Lok Bhalai Party. The Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) has also announced its candidates. The SAD headed by Mr Parkash Singh Badal has so far nominated candidates for 88 seats of the 94 to be contested by it . Mr Badal has retained mostly old loyalists as candidates.

The Congress is expected to field new faces this time. The BJP will mostly repeat its candidates, except for four or five seats. In the next five days, the elections scenario will be almost clear. The This election will see a major clash between two titans — Capt Amarinder Singh and Mr Parkash Singh Badal. For the past five years, the state’s politics has revolved around both. And in the elections, the focus will remain on the two.

Capt Amarinder Singh has practised politics that has kept him in the limelight and pushed to the edge all important actors in his party as well as in the Opposition during the past five years. Undoubtedly, the Captain has been successful in his strategy devised to make his opponents ineffective within the party and outside. With his aggressive style of functioning, Capt Amarinder Singh made space for himself in the top political echelons in no time after taking over as Chief Minister in February, 2002.

Mr Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir Singh, after initial dithering, faced the Captain with all their might, taking him on.