Sonia asks 'Punjabis' to vote Congress, defeat divisive forces

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Jandiala, Amritsar, Feb 7 (UNI) Congress President Sonia Gandhi today called upon the the people of Punjab to help defeat the divisive forces which are a threat to the unity and integrity of the country.

'' Only when there is peace, can a state progress and the people of this state know this the best,'' Ms Gandhi said while addressing her first election rally in this town of Amritsar district.

As she ascended the stage, Ms Gandhi folded her hands and bowing her head in the direction of the Golden Temple, said '' I pay my respects to this holy shrine of the Sikhs.'' Without naming any political party or a leader she reminded the people of the 'dark days' (terrorism), when all development came to a halt and Punjab became a ''backward state.'' ''If Punjab is to move forward, then the hands of the Congress must be strengthened,'' she said while seeking another term for her party in the border state.

Praising Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, she said that a lot of development had taken place in the country, as well as in Punjab after Dr Singh took over. '' Strengthen our hands and Punjab will reach new heights of development and progress,'' she added.

Claiming that the Amarinder Singh government in the state had fulfilled all its promises made in the party manifesto of 2002, Ms Gandhi assured the electorate that if her party was given another term, the commitments made in the current manifesto would also be fulfilled. Drawing a comparison between the Congress party and the 'Punjabis', she said, both keep their word.

Reminding the people that when Chief Minister Amarinder Singh took over the reins of the state, he was confronted with a economy that was in shambles, the Congress chief complimented Capt Singh for putting the state back on the rails of progress and development. Today after five years, the fiscal condition of the state had improved and a lot of investment had taken place, she added.

''However the process of development has still to be consolidated and for this the Congress must be given another term,'' she added.

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