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Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Amrinder Singh, former chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, former All India Congress Committee spokesman Surinder Singla and senior Congress leaders S S Randhawa and Harcharan Singh Brar figure in the list of 106 candidates for the assembly election in the state released on Saturday.
While the PPCC president Singh has been fielded from Patiala Town, Bhattal would be contesting from her traditional constituency Lehra.
The party has allotted 11 seats to its allies -- CPI (nine) and CPM (two) -- as per the understanding reached between the Congress and the two left parties.
Singla, Randhawa and Brar would be contesting from Bhatinda, Fatehgarh and Mukatsar respectively, AICC representative Motilal Vora said, adding candidates were selected after much consideration and scrutiny keeping the mood of the people and the situation prevailing in the state ruled by the Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition.
The party has nominated 17 new faces, repeated all the 14 sitting MLAs and gave tickets to 13 women, Vora said, claiming that the available trends from the state showed the party would get absolute majority and form the next government.
Though Vora claimed only two tickets, Ram Lobhaya (Sham Chaurasi -- SC) and Harbans Kaur (Khanna -- SC), were given to the close relatives of party leaders, the party list also contained the names of Sunil Jakhar, son of senior party leader Balram Jakhar, and Gurinder Pratap Singh Kairon, son of late Pratap Singh Kairon.
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