Jalandhar: Congress mulls options for district chief

Jalandhar: As All India Congress Committee (AICC) observer Rajesh Lilothia begins meetings with party workers to finalize the name of the District Congress Committee (Urban) president, several new contenders have emerged for the post. Outgoing District Congress President and former MLA Rajinder Beri is keen to retain the post, while several municipal councilors and former councilors have also expressed interest. Those in the race reportedly include Jalandhar West constituency in-charge Surinder Kaur, Balraj Thakur, Bunty Neelkanth, Pawan Kumar, and Manu Waring. The party is also taking caste factors into account when making its decision. A party insider said, “If the party plans to stick with a Hindu District Congress President, Beri’s name may be reconsidered. If the party wants to project a Sikh face, Neelkanth could be an option. Dalit contenders include Surinder Kaur and Pawan Kumar.” Lilothia addressed a meeting held at the White Diamond Resort on 66 Feet Road in the Jalandhar Cantt Assembly constituency, which was jointly chaired by Jalandhar Cantt MLA Pargat Singh. As part of ongoing discussions for the upcoming elections for urban and rural presidents, Lilothia interacted with Congress workers from the constituency. He assured them that the selection process would be transparent and fair. He said, “Candidates for both urban and rural presidents will be selected from among those who have consistently raised issues at the grassroots level. The focus now is on further strengthening the Congress.” MLA Pargat Singh thanked Lilothia for inspiring party workers and said that Congress can return to power in Punjab only by strengthening its organizational structure. He said, “Workers should immediately begin efforts to strengthen the party. Together, we can give Punjab a new direction.” Former minister Sunder Sham Arora also attended the meeting.