Kharge, Sonia Lead Congress Discussions As Party Finalises Candidate For LS Polls In Delhi, Punjab, Himachal, Haryana

Congress High-Level Meeting in Himachal Pradesh was attended by Key Leaders Including Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, K C Venugopal. Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.

New Delhi: The Congress Central Election Committee (CEC) on Saturday finalised candidates for the Lok Sabha elections for Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi. The Himachal Pradesh session of the meet attended by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Sonia Gandhi, and AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal, alongside Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, deputy CM Mukesh Agnihotri, and Pradesh Congress Chief Pratibha Singh, and AICC in-charge Rajeev Shukla.

In the Haryana CEC meeting, key leaders such as  PCC chief Uday Bhan, former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Randeep Surjewala, and Kumari Selja joined top party leaders in deliberations. Sources revealed that Deepinder Singh Hooda's candidacy was confirmed for the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat. Additionally, in Himachal Pradesh, the party settled on two candidates, including Vikramaditya Singh, who was proposed to contest against BJP's Kangana Ranaut in the Mandi Lok Sabha constituency, as per insider information, reported news agency PTI.

Pratibha Singh stated that the recommended candidates' names have been submitted to the party high command for final decision. "All senior leaders believe that this time a young leader should be fielded from Mandi Lok Sabha seat and there is consensus on the name of Vikramaditya Singh", she said. 

Mukesh Agnihotri disclosed that the decision has been made to announce two candidates initially, with plans to unveil the remaining two candidates later, as per PTI.

Rajeev Shukla outlined that the meeting focused on strategising the party's approach to secure victory in all four seats in Himachal Pradesh. While two candidates have been finalised, discussions are on for the remaining two seats.

Congress Finalises Names For 7 To 8 Lok Sabha Seats In Punjab: State Unit President 

Punjab Congress President Amarinder Raja Warring said the party has finalised names for seven to eight seats and they will be announced soon. "Today’s CEC meeting at @INCIndia HQ was very productive. Our candidates for about 7-8 seats have been finalised & will be announced soon.  Each & Every punjabi is mentally prepared to eradicate @narendramodi hate politics & will vote for INC in #ParliamentaryElection2024," he wrote in a post on X. 

General elections will be held in the country from 19 April 2024 to 1 June 2024 for the 18th Lok Sabha.