Congress expels all rebel candidates

Chandigarh, Jan 29 (UNI) With the date of withdrawal of nomination papers drawing to a close, Congress today announced the expulsion of all rebel candidates who had not withdrawn from the electoral fray in Punjab.

''All rebels automatically stand expelled from the party'', AICC general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi said while addressing a press conference here today.

Mr Dwivedi who is incharge of Congress affairs in Punjab said that it is a convention in the party that those who contest against the party's official candidates stood expelled.

When pointed out that certain persons who had contested as rebels in the last assembly polls had been given Congress tickets in the elections this time, the Congress leader quipped, ''these are political compulsions''.

Claiming Congress was united in Punjab, he said that there could be differences of opinion amongst leaders, but the party as a whole was united. He predicted that the party would be voted back to power in Punjab as the government under Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had lived upto the aspirations of the people and had ensured overall development.

''All 66 promises made by the party in the manifesto of 2002 had been fulfilled'', he claimed.

UNI