Will wipe out Congress from political landscape of Arunachal: State BJP chief

Lemmi, Mar 25 (PTI) The BJP is confident that it will wipe out the Congress from the political landscape of Arunachal Pradesh in the upcoming elections, the ruling party’s state president Biyuram Wahge said.

The stage is set for the grand old party to face a humiliating defeat in the electoral battle to the two Lok Sabha and 60 assembly constituencies in the state on April 19, Wahge told PTI in an interview.

Wahge, who is contesting from Pakke-Kessang assembly constituency for the third term, claimed that people have no faith in the Congress due to rampant corruption and mismanagement of funds during previous governments of the party.

“We will work to ensure a Congress-mukt Arunachal,” he said.

People have realised that only a “double-engine BJP government” can ensure development, he said.

While the ruling BJP has fielded Union minister Kiren Rijiju and sitting MP Tapir Gao from Arunachal West and East Lok Sabha constituencies respectively, the opposition Congress has nominated former chief minister and sitting MLA from Sagalee constituency, Nabam Tuki, from the West seat and Bosiram Siram from the East constituency.

The BJP has put up candidates in all 60 assembly constituencies while the Congress has fielded 34 nominees, of whom former minister Takam Pario joined the saffron party a day after he was given a Congress ticket.

The BJP state unit chief said that the people have witnessed the development thrust in the country and the state since 2014, which was never seen during the long Congress rule.

“The BJP-led NDA government has worked to improve all sectors, be it health, education or social security, roads, railways or air connectivity. We have provided clean drinking water to people, besides LPG connections and launched various schemes for women and youth, as a result of which people have faith in the party,” he said.

On the BJP’s prospects in the April 19 polls, Wahge exuded confidence that the party would win all the 60 assembly seats and two Lok Sabha constituencies by huge margins.

He said the BJP would fight the polls alone without any alliance with any party.

On issues the BJP is going to polls with, he said the party would highlight various developmental work undertaken by the government.

“Our party will try to remove the ‘money culture’ which is prevalent in the Northeast during elections. It is bad for democracy,” Wahge said, speaking about cash for votes.

Chief Minister Pema Khandu has time and again spoken against “money culture” and corruption, he said.

Arunachal Pradesh will go for simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls in the first phase on April 19.

The counting of votes for assembly elections will be held on June 2 and for Lok Sabha polls on June 4.

While the National Peoples’ Party (NPP) has released a list of 29 candidates, the NCP has so far announced the names of 17 nominees, while the Peoples’ Party of Arunachal (PPA) has named two candidates for the assembly polls.

The NPP, a member of the North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), the regional arm of the NDA, will support the two BJP candidates in the Lok Sabha elections in the state.

In the 2019 assembly elections in the state, the BJP had bagged 41 seats, while the JD(U) had won seven constituencies, the NPP five, the Congress four, the PPA one seat, while two independents had also won. The BJP had won both the Lok Sabha seats.

The term of the present assembly will end on June 2.