Congress plans to counter AAP campaign in Malwa region to win Punjab

According to a survey, Cong is comfortable in Majha and Doaba regions while trouble is in Malwa

For the Congress, which is trying hard to wrest power from the ruling Akali-BJP combine and neutralise the threat from Aam Aadmi Party, Malwa, the biggest of the three regions in Punjab, has emerged as a problem spot.

According to an internal survey, the Congress is comfortable in the other two Majha and Doaba regions of Punjab. All the 117 assembly seats in the state will have polling on February 4. Results will be out on March 11.

Malwa in Punjab is mostly rural in nature where a large number of farmers live. The Congress has alleged that the farm community has come under huge distress over the past decade due to the policies of the Akalis.

The Malwa belt is also considered to be more core Punjabi in terms of the language spoken and cultural ethos.

Both Congress and AAP are trying to tap into widespread anger that the voters in Malwa have against the Akali-BJP combine.

The Congress survey shows it is getting around 30-35 of the 67 seats in the Malwa region, a figure being claimed by AAP also.

Party strategists want to make sure the Congress' tally crosses the 40 seats that it had won in Malwa in the 2012 assembly polls.

To effectively counter AAP, the Congress strategists have put in action a plan where the top leadership including Rahul Gandhi, state unit chief Amarinder Singh and former cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu would focus on the 16 assembly seats falling in the central parts of Malwa including Barnala, Mansa and parts of Sangrur while other important state leaders would cover the peripheral areas.

Sensing the threat from AAP, Amarinder has already addressed rallies in Mansa and Bhatinda areas of the Malwa region.

The Congress managers are banking on its heavy weights contesting various seats in the Malwa region and the influence they would have on the neighbouring constituencies.

For instance, Amarinder Singh is fighting in Lambi against chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and also from Patiala, Manpreet Badal in Bhatinda urban, Rajinder Jaur Bhattal in Lehra, Vijay Inder Singla in Sangrur.

The Congress managers think former CLP leader Sunil Jhakhar fighting in Abohar would have a positive impact on neighboring Muktsar, which falls in Malwa belt.

In Majha area, the Congress hopes to win 19 of the 23 seats, while in Doaba it expects 13 out of 22.

In the Majha area, the Congress is banking on the charm of Navjot Singh Sidhu who will fight from Amritsar East seat held by his wife. Another BJP rebel Anil Joshi has been fielded from Amritsar North seat.

In Doaba area, Hoshiarpur has been traditionally in favour of Congress which hopes to win around 7 or 8 seats in the Jalandhar belt.