SP candidate for block chief's post joins Congress ahead of UP Assembly polls

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], September 11 (ANI): Samajwadi Party candidate for block chief's post, Ritu Singh, joined Congress in the presence of party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday.
Ritu Singh, who was a Samajwadi Party candidate during block chief (Pramukh) polls, received media attention during elections after she was allegedly assaulted during the nomination process.
Meanwhile, Congress' in charge of Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra met the office bearers of eight zones of the state, in Lucknow ahead of Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections scheduled to be held next year.
The Congress leader was on a two-day visit to Lucknow to hold a series of meetings with the party leaders in Uttar Pradesh.
Dr Uma Shankar Pandey, Spokesperson of Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee informed that Priyanka Gandhi reviewed the reports of party office bearers from 831 blocks, 2614 wards, and 8134 Nyaya Panchayats in the state.
"Discussions with office bearers of 874 Nyayapanchayats of 96 blocks falling under the Western Zone were held first. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra discussed all the issues related to the farmers' movement with the party workers. She then received the reports of 830 Nyaya Panchayats of 85 blocks of Rohilkhand zone. In the end, the meetings with workers of Purvanchal and Awadh Zone were held, in which the ground situation of 975 Nyaya Panchayats of 97 blocks of Purvanchal and 133 blocks and 1330 Nyaya Panchayats of Awadh were discussed," said Pandey.
The Pandey said that during the meeting, Priyanka Gandhi said the office bearers of the party organisation workers will play an important role during ticket distribution for the upcoming assembly elections in the state.
"During the review meeting, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra stressed the need for organization building at the ground level, not just to strengthen the party, but to strengthen the country. As the elections are getting nearer, she stressed that party workers need to work day and night. On ticket distribution, she said that the office-bearers of the organization will play an important role in the process of deciding the names of the candidates," added Pandey.
Congress will conduct a Pratigya Yatra in the state covering 12,000 km ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls.
The decision was taken in the meeting of the Advisory and Strategy Committee of the Uttar Pradesh Congress chaired by party's state in-charge Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. In the meeting, it was also decided that zone-wise election campaigns and programmes will be started.
In the 2017 Assembly elections, the BJP won a landslide victory winning 312 Assembly seats. The party secured a 39.67 per cent vote share in the elections for 403-member Assembly. Samajwadi Party (SP) bagged 47 seats, BSP won 19 while Congress could manage to win only seven seats. (ANI)