Congress hopeful of winning both LS seats in Arunachal

CORRESPONDENT
ITANAGAR, Mar 12 – The Congress in Arunachal Pradesh expressed the hope of regaining two parliamentary seats from the Opposition BJP in the April 16 general elections.

The party candidate for Arunachal West parliamentary constituency, Takam Sanjoy, indicated that his party will focus on the developments that came during the rule of the Congress-led UPA at the Centre, but appeared ‘soft’ in raising burning issues plaguing the State like Indo-China border problem, inter-State boundary problem between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh – the two vital issues that had remained unsolved for the past several decades.

The Party candidate for Arunachal East parliamentary constituency, Ninong Ering, also admitted that unlike two BJP sitting MPs, both he and Sanjoy will adopt a ‘soft stance’ regarding raising of issues on the floor of the Parliament on the ground that the State has no issues to raise as the Central government ha already announced various financial packages for the State.

Both the candidates also admitted that it’s an ultimate ‘battle’ for them as any slip from it could very well mark the end of their political career. They claimed that the party has good support from urbanites and ruralites alike.

Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee president Nabam Tuki also said that the people of the state always shared a good relationship with Nehru-Gandhi family. He also admitted that though it’s a tough fight for them to dislodge Kiren Rijiju and Tapir Gao, the BJP MPs, as they already made a place for themselves during the past five years due to their good performance, but since Congress is ruling the state it would not be easy for Opposition BJP to retain the two seats. He expressed confidence that the party candidates will come out victorious in coming parliamentary polls.

Meanwhile, admitting that the Congress is ridden with ‘factional feud’, but just like in a large family differences of opinion occurs and ill blood brews up among ranks and files, the APCC president said that the infighting would not hamper poll prospects.

A number of star campaigners from Central party leadership, including AICC president Sonia Gandhi, general secretary, Rahul Gandhi, secretary in-charge Sanjay Bapna and AICC general secretary and in-charge of Arunachal Pradesh, V Narayanaswamy will arrive in the State soon to lead the party’s poll campaign, Tuki informed. ASSAM TRIBUNE