To discuss the strategy for high-stake Punjab Assembly polls in 2017, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi will hold a meeting with top leaders of the party’s Punjab unit on Wednesday in Delhi.
The meeting will be attended by Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh and State in-charge of the party Asha Kumari. Besides, the leader of Opposition in Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Charanjit Singh Channi and party’s campaign committee chairperson Ambika Soni will also be there.
The meeting will take place in the backdrop of cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu resigning from the Rajya Sabha amidst speculation that he, along with his wife, a BJP legislator, may join the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
The Congress, which has twice lost the Punjab Assembly polls to the SAD-BJP combine, is eyeing to wrest power in the state next year.
Already, Capt Amarinder has indicated that AAP may upset party’s equations, just like the people’s party of Punjab (PPP) did in 2012 polls. With possibility of Sidhu joining AAP, Congress may see a big threat in resurgent AAP.
Capt Amarinder has already launched a mass outreach programme, ‘Halke Vich Captain’ (Captain in your constituency), which Congress leaders claim has been getting a "massive response" from the public. Besides, several sessions of 'Coffee with Captain' had also taken place before 'Halke Vich Captain'.
Both the programmes, centered around Capt Amarinder, have been designed by poll strategist Prashant Kishor's Indian Political Action Committee (IPAC) team.
Congress has already asked ticket aspirants to submit applications to the State unit by August 15 while Capt Amarinder has said "winnability" of a candidate would be the only criteria for allotment of party tickets.
The party has even asked ticket aspirants to give an undertaking not to contest polls against any Congress candidate if they are not given tickets.