AICC national secretary Ashish Dua in race for Gurugram ticket

Sumedha Sharma

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Gurugram, July 28

Ashish Dua, presently the national secretary of the All-Indian Congress Committee (AICC) and incharge Maharashatra, is in the race for the party’s candidature from Gurugram. With Raj Babbar having left a mark in Punjabi population and urban pockets in Gurugram, the party plans to bank on tried and tested mantra; and with Dua fitting the bill, he is being considered as the frontrunner for the post.

Dua, 57, a Gurugram resident and mechanical engineer, is believed to be close to Gandhis and has been vocal about the civic crises in Gurugram. He is more active in national politics. He was a contender for the ticket in 2019 also, but Sukhbeer Kataria was given the chance. Kataria lost by a huge margin to BJP’s Sudhir Singla. Sources claim that facing a dearth of strong party leader in city since 2014, the Congress is looking for a fresh face that not just fits the community equations, but manages to click with the urban population that has been a decisive factor in the Lok Sabha lections.

“Gurugram is big issue for us. After Dharambir Gaba we have not had a strong mass leader from the city. Even in the Lok Sabha, we had to get Raj Babbar who managed to rattle the BJP with minimal time for the campaign. The Punjabi community and urban voters of condominiums and sectors struggling with civic woes emerged our supporters. We need to now bank on this stronghold. The party will conduct on ground research and then decide the candidate,” said a senior leader of AICC.

Dua is believed to be close to Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. Besides being the incharge from Maharashtra, he is a party observer for 15 states. Speaking to The Tribune, he said:

“I have filed my application and the rest is party’s decision.”