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Tough fight between BJP, Cong-AC alliance
The state is going to witness a straight fight between ruling BJP and the alliance between Congress and Arunachal Congress (AC) for the two seats.
Against the backdrop of poll-boycott call by All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU) on Chakma-Hajong refugee issue, the state is going to witness a straight fight between ruling BJP and the alliance between Congress and a regional party Arunachal Congress (AC) for the two Lok Sabha seats going to poll on May 5.
While for Arunachal East seat, BJP renominated Tapir Gao who unsuccessfully contested last time and put up green horn Khiren Rijiju for Arunachal West, Congress has renominated Wangcha Rajkumar from Arunachal East leaving Arunachal West seat to AC president Kamen Ringu.
Incidentaly AC, a regional party was founded by present chief minister Gegong Apang after leaving Congress eight years ago following differences with the then prime minister Narasimha Rao.
P A Sangma's Nationalist Trinamool Congress has also decided to field candidates for both the seats. But the party has no grass-root level organisation in the state. More
AC which was an ally recently left NDA and its president Kamen Ringu, once very close to Apang, started dialogue with state Congress chief and former chief minister Mukut Mithi for an alliance.
Mithi and Ringu after returning from New Delhi told a press conference here yesterday that Congress president Sonia Gandhi has approved seat sharing between Congress and AC.
Mithi said though Congress won both the seats in last elections, this time it decided to renominate its candidate for the Arunachal East seat Wangcha Rajkumar, leaving Arunachal West seat to Ringu of the AC with which " we will like to have an alliance in the coming assembly elections due in September next."
Party sources howerver said that Congress sacrificed the West seat for AC which is not a formidable force particularly after Apang deserted it to give a tough fight to BJP's Khiren Rijiju who is general secretary of a state unit.
As founder of AC it will be difficult for Apang and his supporters to criticise AC and its candidate Ringu who had maintained a very clean image during his 25 years of public life.
