Congress-AAP joint panel to be formed for campaign in Delhi for Lok Sabha polls: Lovely
New Delhi (PTI): A coordination committee will be formed in a day or two for the joint campaign of the Congress and the AAP in the national capital, Delhi Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely said on Thursday.
Speaking to PTI, Lovely said a panel under the chairmanship of former Delhi Congress president Subhash Chopra will be formed and several former Delhi ministers will be a part of it.
The Congress and the AAP are constituents of the INDIA bloc formed by opposition parties to take on the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. While the AAP will contest on four seats in Delhi, the Congress will fight on three.
"Congress and AAP will definitely campaign together for the Lok Sabha elections in Delhi. We will form a coordination committee under the chairmanship of Subhash Chopra in a day or two and all former ministers will be a part of it. They will coordinate the campaigns and public meetings of both the parties," Lovely told PTI.
He said leaders like Haroon Yusuf, Raj Kumar Chauhan, Mukesh Sharma, Jai Kishan and Ramesh Kumar from the Congress will be a part of the committee.
Earlier, senior AAP leader Sandeep Pathak had said the AAP and Congress will campaign together for the upcoming polls.
Speaking about their social media campaign, Lovely said chairpersons, who will be appointed for each Lok Sabha as well as assembly constituency, will identify the issues of the citizens - from central to local problems.
He said a "war room" has been established in the Delhi Congress office to monitor the social media campaign.
"We will have over 150 office-bearers who will work as volunteers for this. All assemblies, blocks and districts will have one chairman each for social media campaigns," Lovely told PTI.
On wednesday, Lovely held a meeting of party's social media volunteers and said they will strengthen the outreach of the media by enrolling more such volunteers ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
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Late flourish masks CSK’s batting woes on lively Chepauk track, hosts post 158/7
Chennai (PTI): Bowlers calling the shots in a format dominated by big hitters is a rarity, but that script played out at Chepauk on Sunday as Gujarat Titans exploited a lively, bounce-friendly surface to stifle Chennai Super Kings before the hosts managed a late flourish to reach 158 for 7.
On a pitch that offered sharp carry, stroke-making demanded discretion and adaptability. Instead, CSK’s batters often opted for high-risk shots without fully assessing conditions, and paid the price with a flurry of miscued dismissals.
Invited to bat, CSK never quite found rhythm but skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad’s maiden half-century (74 not out) of the current IPL season lent a semblance of respectability to the total in a season where 200-plus scores have become commonplace.
Gaikwad's knock came off 60 balls with six fours and four sixes after a laboured start.
The tone was set early by GT pacer Mohammed Siraj, who extracted steep bounce and forced errors.
Sanju Samson (11) began watchfully, negotiating the first over before opening up against Kagiso Rabada to bring up his 5000 IPL runs milestone. However, Rabada’s bounce soon accounted for him as a hard slash outside off resulted in a faint edge that Jos Buttler pouched safely.
The dismissal triggered a collapse. Urvil Patel (4) fell in the same Rabada over attempting an ambitious pull, while Sarfaraz Khan (0) succumbed to Siraj’s extra lift, mistiming a short ball to offer a simple catch.
At 28 for 3 inside the Powerplay, CSK were already in trouble.
Gaikwad and Dewald Brevis (2) needed to rebuild, but the latter’s impatience against spinner Manav Suthar led to his downfall, holing out after failing to get to the pitch of the ball.
The mounting wickets forced Gaikwad into a shell — an approach that, while understandable, further stalled the momentum. His reluctance to improvise allowed dot balls to pile up, with CSK reaching 50 only in the 12th over.
The skipper eventually broke free, taking on Arshad Khan and Jason Holder with a couple of towering sixes, but the acceleration came too late.
Shivam Dube, dropped thrice on 6, 11 and 22, struggled for fluency before Arshad cleaned him up.
Kartik Sharma (15) and Jamie Overton (18) provided late impetus with a few lusty hits, but the damage had already been done.
On a pitch that rewarded discipline and smart shot selection, Titans' bowlers executed their plans to perfection, while CSK’s batters failed to read the conditions in time, a lapse that ultimately defined the innings.
