The protest of party workers in BJP after the announcement of first caught everyone by surprise. Not only BJP but Congress too has not expected the intensity of dissent among hopefuls and their supporters. But the shock wave in BJP prompted Congress to prepare for dealing with aftermath of ticket distribution.
“In Congress intensity would be less as there is no Lok Sabha MP from the party who could be fielded. Generally there are two strong contenders for a seat. One gets ticket and other sulk. But in case of BJP, both the contenders were left to sulk and the third (MP) unexpected candidate got the ticket. That ‘doubled' the intensity,” said a senior Congress leader who has opted out from the race.
He said that top leaders of the party are also discussing the plan for damage control while finalising the ticket.
“More than 50% of sitting MLAs will be denied ticket this time based of the feedback. A few minister in Gehlot's cabinet too will not get chance. So there is likelihood of hullabaloo post ticket distribution. Senior party leaders are told to prevent situation from turning ugly,” he said.
According to sources, Congress will come up with a list of 90-100 seats in the first list, which will have the obvious candidates including Sachin Pilot, Govind Singh Dotasara, Ashok Gehlot and other senior party leaders. The list will also have names on seats from where party has been losing for last three elections.
“Party high command is working on a formula for ticket distribution in a cordial manner. Since there are factions in the party and every faction is pushing contention of their candidates, high command has taken final decision in its hand. Gehlot and Pilot have been told to cooperate and fight together to win,” said a senior Congress leader.
Ram Kumar Kaushik is a seasoned journalist with over 25 years of experience across mediums. The architect of this news website, he is also a consultant with several media groups. He was formerly the group managing editor of ITV Network (NewsX, India News and The Sunday Guardian) and its digital products.
