Sonia Gandhi in Shimla, Priyanka to launch campaign from Solan

Pratibha Chauhan

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Shimla, October 10

AICC president Sonia Gandhi arrived here today on a two-day private visit. Her daughter and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra would kick-start the party’s election campaign from Solan on October 14.

The BJP has already taken a head start in campaigning for the Vidhan Sabha elections. The Congress is gearing up to launch its campaign with Priyanka’s rally in Solan on October 14. Sonia, who arrived at Priyanka’s cottage at Chharabra, near here, by road from Chandigarh, is expected to return on October 12 before the scheduled meeting of the Central Election Committee (CEC) in New Delhi on October 14 to finalise candidates.

Sources said that the Congress was planning to hold a rally to be addressed by Sonia Gandhi in coming days. BJP’s top leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP national president JP Nadda and Union ministers Smriti Irani and Anurag Thakur, are leading the party campaign by travelling to every nook and corner of the state.

The senior Congress leadership is busy in preparations for the Solan rally, which will mark the launch of the party campaign for the Vidhan Sabha elections. This time, the Congress will be contesting the Assembly elections in the absence of former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who passed away last year.

In the absence of the “Raja”, the Congress will have to rely heavily on its central leadership to woo voters. Barring HPCC president Pratibha Singh, who will not be contesting election, all other leaders such as CLP Leader Mukesh Agnihotri and chairman of the Congress Campaign Committee Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu are busy in their Assembly constituencies.

Pratibha today urged all MLAs, former MLAs, party office-bearers and heads of frontal organisations such as the Mahila Congress, Youth Congress, NSUI and other cells to take part in the Solan rally.

Candidates for 45 seats finalised

The Congress has so far finalised candidates for 45 seats and a tussle is going on in the party to decide the candidates for Assembly seats such as Shimla (Urban), Theog (Shimla), Pachhad (Sirmaur), Shahpur, Dharamsala, Nurpur and Sulah (Kangra) and Bharmour (Chamba).