Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh files nomination from Mandi

Shimla : Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh filed his nomination papers from the Mandi Lok Sabha seat on Thursday, and attacked BJP candidate Kangana Ranaut in an oblique reference.

"We are doing politics of development, she is doing politics of entertainment" said Singh, adding that this "picture" directed by Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur would fail on the "box office' on June 1.

Singh, who was accompanied by his mother and state Congress chief Pratibha Singh, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Congress Working Committee (CWC) member and Himachal in-charge Rajiv Shukla, said, "Kangana is abusing Congress leaders from the stage but in the past 20-25 days, she had not even once spelt out her vision for the constituency.

"Kangana had started her campaign 20-25 days back and from morning to evening, she used abusive words for us but has not uttered a single word on her vision for this parliamentary constituency", he said, adding that she should tell people what she wanted to do.

Mandi would be made a smart city and Jalori Jot tunnel would be constructed on the line of the Rohtang tunnel. The remote Pangi area of Chamba would be would also be connected through the tunnel, Singh told PTI.

"I would take forward the long and deep relation with the people of Mandi", the Congress candidate, who is the son of late chief minister Virbhadra Singh, said.

Scion of erstwhile Rampur estate, Singh is pitted against actor and BJP candidate Kangana Ranaut.

Elaborating on the achievements of the Congress, Singh said the party has opened IIT at Mandi, a medical college at Nerchowk and been instrumental in construction of the Kirathpur-Nerchowk four lane.

"We stood with the people of Mandi during the worst monsoon disaster last year and will continue to be with them, and I have got Rs 3,500 crore for the state from the Centre," he added.

Besides the development agenda, long pending matters related to Good and Service tax, revenue deficit grant and old pension scheme would also be taken up with the Union government after the party wins, he assured the people of Mandi.

"Change of winds are visible in the country and after the first three phases of Lok Sabha polls, the BJP has been washed out in the South and halved in the North", he claimed.

The Congress government in the state would continue with its development and welfare agenda for the next three-and-a-half years, he said while exuding confidence that his party would also win all the six assembly seats in the bypolls.

Interacting with the media, Sukhu claimed that he has extensively toured the constituency and people are praising the policies of the Congress government and the efforts made during the monsoon disaster, and they are against the BJP for allegedly not standing with the state during the disaster.

"This is an election between honesty and corruption and the issue of horse-trading by the BJP would be kept in front of the people, besides public welfare work undertaken by the state government like restoration of the Old Pension Scheme and Rs 1500 monthly to women," he said.

'Vikramaditya Singh would win by a margin of over 2 lakh,' said Sukhu.