With a view to regain lost glory by winning the upcoming Gujarat Assembly polls next year, the grand old party Congress has decided to announce all its 182 candidates by this year end.
Assembly election in the State is scheduled in December 2017. Over the past two decades Congress is away from power in Gujarat since 1995 after the rise of BJP in the State.
In the executive committee meeting of Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) on Tuesday, the State Congress leaders announced in presence of State in-charge Gurudas Kamat that the aspiring members of the party willing to contest Assembly polls would require to submit their names before August 15 this year.
In the meeting district level office bearers were also asked to submit probable candidates’ names before September so that the party high command can take decision on final list of party candidates for all 182 constituencies before the end of this year.
The Gujarat Congress in-charge Kamat said that the party high command wanted to give adequate time to Congress candidates for better poll campaign planning in order to ensure victory in their respective constituencies.
“The Congress party will contest on development poll plank with the sole target to win 2017 elections in Gujarat. Announcing the names of candidates in advance is part of the strategy,” said GPCC president Bharatsinh Solanki.
Announcement of candidates’ name in advance would not only give ample of time to candidates to work in their constituencies but in case if there would be some issue with any candidate, the party high command will get enough time to replace him or her with better option, said Solanki.
He pointed out that the aspiring candidates willing to contest Assembly poll would have to give detailed list of at least 15 workers for every booth along with their names, addresses and phone numbers. In case any candidate fails to provide the details of booth workers, he or she wouldn’t be considered for candidature, he added.
On a query about taking written statement owing allegiance from the candidates in the State the way it was taken in West Bengal and Punjab, Kamat diplomatically said that the party leaders have full faith in its workers and hence the situation would arise in Gujarat.