LS Polls: Congress lines up star campaigners for Delhi ahead of polls

The star campaigners of Congress including its president Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, former prime minister Manmohan Singh and Shatrughan Sinha will blaze the campaign trail for party candidates for Lok Sabha polls in Delhi.

The party has drawn up a list of 40 senior leaders including Delhi Congress president Sheila Dikshit for the campaigning that will pick up pace in the coming days, according to party leaders.

"We have sought permission of high command for a major road show of Rahul Gandhi or Priyanka Vadra, before May 6," said a senior Delhi Congress leader.

The Congress plans to hold a series of road shows of the Gandhi siblings and other prominent leaders, rather than organising a big public rally, party insiders said.

"We will be focusing on road shows because the heat is getting oppressive and it will be very difficult to hold large gatherings in such weather," he said.

The list includes fiery speakers Shatrughan Sinha and former cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu, who have emerged as severe critics of the BJP.

Senior party leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Punjab Chief Minister Amrinder Singh, Ahmed Patel, Kapil Sibal, Anand Sharma, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Rajashtan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot and Bhupinder Singh Hooda, among others, will also campaign in Delhi.

The voting for seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi will be held on May 12.

Several senior Delhi Congress leaders including Haroon Yusuf, Subhash Chopra, Devender Yadav, Narendra Nath, Ragini Nayak and Kiran Walia have been included in the list.

However, the party has not included sitting MP from North West Delhi Udit Raj, who quit BJP over being denied ticket, and joined the Congress, in its list of star campaigners.

Mr Raj has been hitting out at his former party ever since he rebelled against it for being denied ticket in favour of famous Punjabi singer Hans Raj Hans.

-PTI