Congress to field Pilot, Jitendra for bypolls in Ajmer, Alwar

NEW DELHI: In a step that will raise the stakes in the twin byelections in BJP-ruled Rajasthan, Congress is learnt to be finalising the candidatures of Sachin Pilot and Jitendra Singh for the Lok Sabha seats of Ajmer and Alwar. The two seats fell vacant following the death of BJP MPs.

Pilot and Singh are known confidants of Congress vicepresident Rahul Gandhi. While Pilot was handpicked by Rahul to head the party's Rajasthan unit, Singh is a former Union minister who is known for his proximity to the heir apparent.

Congress sources said the two unexpected elections are tricky. By the time they are held around year-end, only 11 months would be left for assembly polls in Rajasthan. Also, speculation about the ruling BJP advancing Lok Sabha polls also raises the possibility of a truncated tenure of the lower House.

Such scenarios are bound to cause reluctance among known party faces about contesting bypolls, especially when a possible defeat carries a serious political risk.However, Congress sources said Pilot and Singh, who lost Ajmer and Alwar in 2014, are likely to contest.

The AICC is learnt to have conducted a preliminary assessment of the two constituencies and the situation is said to be "positive", owing to the "unpopularity" of the Raje government as well as issues like price rise and economic slowdown. The presence of two Gen-Next faces of Congress in the battlefield is bound to make these polls a prestige issue for BJP and could trigger cut-throat competition among the parties.