Punjab Congress party affairs in-charge Asha Kumari on Tuesday said that it was an old practice in the party to ask its leaders to take a loyalty pledge.
“This system of seeking a written undertaking from those hoping for the party ticket is nothing new. We had followed this format in the Himachal Pradesh assembly elections in December 2012,” said Asha Kumari, who is also Dalhousie MlA in Himachal Pradesh.
She said that the Congress had made its legislators sign the ‘loyalty affidavit’ in the West Bengal elections in May to ensure that they don’t rebel if denied the chance to contest.
“When applying for the ticket, the aspirant has to declare in writing that he or she will work for the party irrespective of being given the chance to contest. The new thing is that the ticket aspirants will need to mention the names of two voters from every booth in the constituency they want to contest from. There is nothing wrong in that,” she said.
Asha Kumari, who succeeded Congress’ veteran leader Kamal Nath as Punjab affairs in-charge in June after he quit following an opposition uproar over his alleged role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, said that the party was geared up for the election.
“Senior leaders would be touring the State for 45 days…Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh’s ‘Coffee with Captain’ and ‘Halke Vich Captain’ are such connect programmes,” she said.
On Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), she said that it was “an outsider”.
“It does not understand Punjab and its culture. Those who don’t understand the state are trying to create a wave in AAP’s favour. Their Mehrauli (Delhi) MlA, Naresh Yadav, is being questioned for his role in a Quran sacrilege case in Malerkotla. This shows they are desperate to grab power but lack local support,” she said.
Denying infighting in the Punjab Congress unit, she said: “Difference of opinion should not be dubbed as groupism. The State Congress is united and focused on the election.”
On Prashant Kishor’s role in Punjab polls, she said that he was “only a poll strategist. He will not design the entire campaign”.