M A I N   N E W S

No review of list: Amarinder
Prabhjot Singh
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 23
“There will be no change of candidates. We hope to get between 70 and 75 seats and break the jinx that no party in Punjab has been in power for two terms in a row.”, says Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh.

“The Congress president has made it clear that there will be no change in the list of candidates,” he maintains.

“Now, the common man is driven more by economic issues than religious or Panthic agenda. People have a vision .We can claim to have forced the Akalis to start talking about economic issues than seeking votes on religious issues.”

The Congress may have hijacked the Akali agenda in the past to make deep inroads into their vote bank. “We have made a dent. Out vote is increasing. In recent days wherever I have gone, I have seen hundreds of youngsters on motorcycles. Only five to 10 per cent of them sport turbans. For the youth, it is their future which is more important than following any religious agenda. And we have 70 per cent of our electorates below 40,” says the Chief Minister.

“In the last election we saw a two to three per cent swing in the rural vote in our favour. A further two to three per cent swing will get us back in power for the second consecutive time.”

For him, dissidence or revolt over ticket denial is normal. “It is happening everywhere and in every party. I am holding talks with those who have cooled down. I will talk to others after the last date of nominations.

“Win-ability of a candidate has been the sole criteria for distributing the tickets. Mrs Sonia Gandhi endorsed our selection of candidates. By replacing eight MLAs and giving tickets to 32 new faces, we have done well. We hope to improve our position in the Malwa belt by 12 to 14 seats.”

For the Congress, the main poll plank will be its achievements and future programme aimed at taking the state forward, focusing more on health and education.

“Our manifesto is ready and will be released in Chandigarh soon,’ says Capt Amarinder Singh, saying the Congress president and the Prime Minister would address four election rallies each between February 5 and 10.

The Chief Minister said there was nothing like “ anti-incumbency factor.”

He said that “lack of economic independence perhaps, was one reason for fewer women opting for politics .”

The Chief Minister feels that the fight is between the Congress and the Akalis. Neither the CPI nor the CPM could have proved useful to the Congress.