Elections may be more than eight months away in Punjab but the Congress party has already begun its pre-election campaign. Party chief Captain Amarinder Singh – hoping to return as Chief Minister – has kicked-off a series of meetings titled ‘Coffee with Captain’ – perhaps taking off from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popular ‘chai pe charcha’ sessions.
In the fourth of what is likely to be a series of meetings, Captain Amarinder Singh, who fought in the 1965 war – will meet with over 2000 ex-servicemen in Pathankot, which witnessed a terror attack in January this year.
The interaction, organised by the Prashant Kishor-led I-PAC, will see representatives from ex-servicemen associations from Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and Pathankot among others.
Interestingly, Singh and Kishor got off to a rocky start with reports suggesting that Kishor was in talks with expelled Congress leaders, hoping to bring them on board.
In an earlier interview with The Indian Express, Singh dismissed Kishor’s role in party affairs, saying his job was to strategise.
Here’s what Singh had to say when asked about a reported meeting between Kishor and expelled leaders Jagmeet Brar and Bir Devinder:
“Prashant’s business is to strategise. Running the party is my business. Prashant has no business to interfere in this. Taking somebody back or recommending somebody’s expulsion is my job. That’s why I say he does not understand the intricacies of Punjab politics. Now, if he says he is in touch with an Akali or BJP leader to take him in Congress fold; it is me who will have to take a call.”
In an earlier such session, Singh met with over 1000 youth from colleges across the state – who showed interest in campaigning for Singh on social media platforms.
Struck with consecutive defeats in state assembly elections, the Congress party is pinning their hopes on Punjab, hoping to break the jinx and secure a significant win – one that would help boost the morale of its party workers.
SOURCE: goo.gl/arHWQO