Either Sidhu or wife will get ticket, not both: Amarinder

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Press Trust of India New Delhi
Last Updated : Dec 21 2016 | 8:08 PM IST
Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh today ruled out the possibility of giving party tickets to both Navjot Sidhu and his wife for the upcoming assembly polls in the state, saying the 'one-family-one-ticket' norm will be strictly enforced.
Interestingly, the comments by Singh, who is leading Congress' campaign in Punjab, came a day after the cricketer- turned politician met Rahul Gandhi.
Congress has already finalised half of its candidates for the polls in the state and Singh said it was for the Sidhu couple to decide who among them will contest on Congress ticket.
He also said there was no talk in Congress about offering Deputy Chief Minister's post to Sidhu, adding it was all media creation.
"I will meet Sidhu soon to work out the modalities of his joining the party," the former Punjab chief minister told reporters.
Asked about reports of Sidhu contesting from Amritsar East constituency where his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu is a sitting MLA, Singh said, "It was up to the Sidhu couple to decide who will contest. The party will strictly adhere to one-family- one-ticket norm in all cases."
While Navjot Kaur joined the Congress last month, Sidhu is yet to join the party. When Kaur was asked if her husband would join Congress, she had said "Hum do shareer ek aatma hai, fir ek dusre ke bina kab tak reh paenge? (We are two bodies one soul how can we live separately)".
Sidhu's entry into Congress has been speculated for a long time. Earlier, he was in talks with AAP but the negotiations did not yield any result and led to a split in Sidhu's recently formed outfit Awaaz-E-Punjab.
Asked about selection of remaining candidates, Singh winnability will be the sole criteria and even clearly indicated that some sitting MLAs may be dropped.

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First Published: Dec 21 2016 | 8:08 PM IST

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