NEWS

Former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday said that he would fight state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu's elevation to chief ministership "tooth and nail", and was ready to make any sacrifice to save the state from such a "dangerous man."

Reiterating his intention of countering any move to make Sidhu the state's chief ministerial face, Amarinder Singh said he will pit a strong candidate against the latter in the 2022 Assembly polls to ensure his defeat.

"He [Sidhu] is dangerous for the state," Amarinder Singh said.

After the leadership change in Punjab, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and his think tank is working to settle 'leadership issues' in Chhattisgarh. The Wayanad MP may visit the state next week, top sources have confirmed.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel had invited Rahul Gandhi to visit the state and inspect the development work done by his government when the two leaders met in Delhi last month.

Top sources in the Congress have indicated that the leadership change issue in Chhattisgarh is still being discussed by the party high command.

"Any decision on the leadership issue will be taken after the visit," said a party source.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday shared her party's pan-India plans and vowed to defeat the BJP in several states, including Goa.

Ahead of the Assembly bypoll in Kolkata's Bhabanipur, Banerjee said, “We will contest in other states. We will contest in Tripura. Tripura te khela hobe, Assam te khela hobe, Goa te khela hobe, UP te khela hobe. BJP should know that the player who will defeat them has come.”

The TMC is in talks with a senior Congress leader in Goa who may join the party, according to political sources. Assembly polls in Goa are expected to be held in February-March next year.

The ruling Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress (YSRC) is in a commanding position in Andhra Pradesh having captured all the 13 zilla parishads (ZPs) and over 90 per cent of the Mandal Parishads on September 19, trouncing rivals with huge margins. This is the first time that a ruling party has won all the ZPs in the state.

The rival Telugu Desam Party (TDP) could not win double digit ZP Territorial Constituencies (ZPTCs) in any district to get the status of principal opposition in the rural local bodies. The TDP had fielded candidates and campaigned for several months, but later abruptly quit the battlefield after a defeat in the panchayat and municipal elections. Many TDP candidates remained in the race by defying party decisions but lost. In the panchayat and municipal polls held in February, the YSRC won over 83 per cent of the seats.