NEW DELHI: Eager to break the recent victory march of the Bharatiya Janata Party and put a spanner in its plans to now win the Municipal Corporation of Delhi elections, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday directed AICC general secretary and in-charge Delhi affairs Ashok Gehlot to ensure that there was no undue interference by party leaders in the distribution of tickets.

During the meeting, Ms Gandhi is learnt to have told Mr Gehlot that she would not tolerate any interference in selection of candidates for the elections. She said the most eligible candidates should be selected so that the chances of winning the polls increase. Ms Gandhi also directed Mr Gehlot to prepare a list of all the recommendations made by various Members of Parliament, Congress office bearers and ministers and forward it to her.

Incidentally, Ms Gandhi also discussed with Mr Gehlot a letter sent by Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit in which she had claimed that the party leadership in Delhi had not consulted her in the selection of 12 District Congress Committee Observers. Ms Dikshit had stated that it would be better for the party if she would be consulted in matters of importance in the run up to the polls.

The direction assumes significance since so far the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee has received over 500 recommendations for the 272 wards of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. With the total number of applications received by it swelling to over 9,000 on the last day of receipt of applications, the State Congress has a major task at hand now to select the candidate with the best prospects of winning.

It is also pertinent to note that the Congress is faced with a major anti-incumbency sentiment arising due to the poor performance of some of the party Councillors during the past five years and the allegations of corruption that cropped up against them. Sources said in the last MCD polls too there had been a flood of recommendations from central party leaders and MPs because of which many deserving candidates were dropped in favour of the recommended ones. Case in point are Savitri Sharma and Ramesh Pandit who had then been recommended by Mani Shankar Aiyar and Kamal Nath respectively.

But while last time most of the recommended candidates managed to win their seats riding a Congress wave, this time political observers insist only the genuine workers who have a clean image would be able to pull through.

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