Uttaranchal Congress president Harish Rawat said that the party had suspended all rebels contesting the assembly elections against the official candidates of the party.
Mr Rawat admitted that differences had surfaced in the party after the announcement of the official list of Congress candidates. Even a Congress member of long standing, Dr Shivanand Nautiyal, resigned from the party and filed his nomination as an independent candidate, he said addressing a public meeting in Shrinagar on Sunday. ''It gives us pain to take disciplinary action against them but it has to be done to maintain discipline in the party'', he said, adding many of those expelled had contributed to the strength of the party in the hill region.
He launched an aggressive attack on the BJP saying that after the end of Congress rule, no development, whatsoever, had taken place in the hill region. He said he was prepared to hold a debate with the BJP on the issue of development. ''I challenge the BJP to come forward with the facts about the development works that had been done during its tenure.''
Mr Rawat said that there was a favourable atmosphere in the state for the victory of the Congress. Bureau Report