Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, March 20:
The Assam Assembly election will be a star-studded battle with all major political parties bringing in film stars, including Bollywood heart-throb Aishwarya Rai, dream girl Hema Malini, Vinod Khanna and Govinda, in a bid to woo the State's 1.74 crore voters.
Besides film stars, political bigwigs will also tour the State to boost their respective parties' campaigns.
If main opposition Asom Gana Parishad is trying to rope in Aishwarya, Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Prada and Jaya Bachchan along with TDP chief N Chandra Babu Naidu and National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, the BJP will bring in Hema Malini, Smriti Irani and Vinod Khanna, apart from former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former party chief L K Advani and "Hindutva icon" Narendra Modi.
The Congress is likely to field Govinda, Rahul Gandhi, Sachin Pilot, Priya Dutt and top leaders like Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, party president Sonia Gandhi and others.
"We are trying to bring in Aishwarya, Jaya Prada, Jaya Bachchan and if his health permits Amitabh Bachchan for our campaign," AGP general secretary Dilip Kumar Saikia told PTI.
"Naidu and Farooq Abdullah have confirmed their participation in campaigning," he said over phone from Guwahati.
PTI BJP's state unit president Indramoni Bora said party MP Hema Malini and TV actress Smriti Irani would go to the state for three days each to campaign for the party's candidates.
"We are also in touch with Vinod Khanna," he said.
"Former Prime Minister Vajpayee will go for one day while former BJP chief Advani, BJP president Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj will visit Assam for three days each," he said.
Bora said Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda are also likely to visit the state for campaigning.
Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhubaneswar Kalita said that besides Govinda, young MPs Rahul Gandhi, Sachin Pilot and Priya Dutt would visit the state to campaign for party candidates.
"Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, party chief Sonia Gandhi, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Union Ministers Saifuddin Soz, Oscar Fernandes and Mani Shankar Aiyar would be the prominent leaders to campaign for the party," he told PTI.
Kalita said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad are also expected to visit the state to campaign for the Congress candidates.
The two-phased Assam Assembly election would be held on April three and ten.




