Congress will not have CM face in the five states going to polls

The Congress will not project any chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur. 

Party sources said that, in the case of victory, the Congress legislative parties will decide the new leaders with the consent of the central command.

Congress leaders in Punjab and Uttarakhand want the party to announce chief ministerial candidates before going into the elections. Supporters of Harish Rawat, former chief minister of Uttarakhand, and Navjot Singh Sidhu, Punjab Congress chief, are vocal about their demands. But the party says it does not want to risk alienating other factions ahead of the polls.

Also read: EC announces polls for UP, Punjab, Goa, other states

The Congress is facing an uphill challenge in Punjab, and is trying to put up a creditable show in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.

Except in UP, the party is in direct contest with the BJP in three states, while in Punjab, it faces the Akali Dal-BSP and the Aam Aadmi Party.

Though it is not the main challenger in UP, the Congress wants to be ahead of the BSP in the contest.

The Congress is faced with a crisis in Goa, where almost all the MLAs have deserted the party. The party has three former chief ministers: Digambar Kamat, Pratap Singh Rane and Francisco Sardinha.

In Manipur, too, the Congress has faced an exodus ahead of the polls. But there Okram Ibobi Singh, the former chief minister, could be given one more chance if the party comes to power. 

The party is paying special attention to the northeastern state and has appointed Jairam Ramesh as the senior observer. In the last election in Manipur, the Congress could not form the government despite emerging as the single largest party.