Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder on Sunday denied any undue delay in declaration of party candidates for the upcoming assembly elections, saying the Congress was a large party that needed to go through systems and processes to ensure proper ticket allocation.Responding to questions from mediapersons, Captain Amarinder said the delay in announcement would not impact the campaigning by the Congress candidates, who would get ample time to engage in electioneering. Unlike the Shiromani Akali Dal and Aam Aadmi Party, which are both one-member/one-family parties, the Congress is a well-structured organization that works on principles and processes, he said.On speculation surrounding ticket allocation for senior party leader Manish Tiwari, Captain Amarinder said the decision vested with the Indian National Congress president and would be announced at a suitable time.On Navjot Singh Sidhu’s plans in the Punjab Congress, Captain Amarinder said he was yet to announce his decision, which the party had left to him.
Captain Amarinder said, in response to another question, that both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi would be coming to campaign for the Congress in Punjab and he would also request Priyanka Gandhi to help with the electioneering.Asked about singer Hans Raj Hans’ decision to quit the Congress and join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Punjab Congress president said he might have taken this decision to earn recognition at the national level. The BJP was absolutely a non-player in Punjab, he pointed out.To a question about AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal’s promise to appoint a Dalit deputy chief minister in Punjab, Captain Amarinder dismissed it as fraudulent claims and pointed out that Kejriwal had no Sikh or Dalit minister in Delhi and was merely trying to befool the people of Punjab through such misleading statements.