The Hindu : Congress focus on unemployment, farm sector

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 10, 2004

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Congress focus on unemployment, farm sector

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 9. The Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, today said the party would focus on unemployment and the agriculture sector during the Lok Sabha election campaign.

Ms. Gandhi, who presided over a meeting of the Congress Working Committee here, said the party had finalised the draft manifesto for the 2004 Lok Sabha polls.

The Congress president told correspondents that suggestions received at the meeting would be incorporated and the manifesto would be released soon.

Responding to questions on the controversial Permanent Resident Status (Disqualification) Bill in Jammu and Kashmir, Ms. Gandhi said she was glad that the Bill had been referred to a select committee after she had protested against its hasty introduction.

Asked about the reported disagreement by the People's Democratic Party chief, Mehbooba Mufti, the Congress president said: "That is not my information."

To a question as to how would the Congress respond to the "India Rising" Yatra of the Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, she retorted: "You tell me, how is Mr. Advani going to counter my `Jan Sampark Abhiyan'?" She stressed that Mr. Advani's journey was essentially in response to her campaign.

The CWC also adopted a statement on the issues involved in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections.

The statement was based on a note prepared by senior leader, Arjun Singh.

Meanwhile, senior Congress leader, Chaudhary Birender Singh, in charge of party affairs in Uttar Pradesh, today said the party had decided to finalise candidates for 40 Lok Sabha seats soon.

Though the party was still discussing a poll alliance in the State, it has already scrutinised the list of probable candidates for all the 80 Lok Sabha seats.

He said the Congress was also discussing alliances with smaller parties such as the Apna Dal, the Muslim Majlis, the National Loktantrik Party and a splinter group of the CPI, sharing power in the Samajwadi Party Government.

Earlier, Ms. Gandhi reiterated that while the Congress was still holding discussions to come to an understanding in Uttar Pradesh, it was willing to go it alone in case the pact with the Bahujan Samaj Party did not materialise.

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