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RPI to elect president on October 28

The Republican Party of India's organisational election will be held during the party's national convention, scheduled to begin on October 28 at Nanded in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra.

Announcing this, the party's returning officer, Prakash Ambedkar, MP, said that besides the president, the two-day convention would elect a general secretary, five vice-presidents, a treasurer, and 38 executive committee members.

The election will be conducted in accordance with the decisions taken at the party meeting on August 9, he said.

The nominations will be received between October 15 and 22 and symbols will be allotted to the contesting candidates on October 24. If necessary, an election will be held at Nanded on October 28.

Ambedkar said the RPI favours forging an alliance with the Congress for the assembly election in Madhya Pradesh and Delhi in November and negotiations to this end are in progress.

Preliminary talks have already been held with Congress general secretaries Madhavrao Scindia and Oscar Fernandes and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sharad Pawar. The RPI is now awaiting a reply from the Congress, he said.

The senior RPI leader also announced that negotiations are on with the Communist Party of India, the CPI-M and other smaller groups to contest the elections to the Gondwana Development Board in Madhya Pradesh.

Another senior RPI leader, R S Gavai, MP, had had talks with Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh in Nagpur recently, he said in reply to a question, but refused to give details.

Besides the Congress, the RPI is having talks with the Samajwadi Party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal to contest the Delhi assembly elections jointly, he added.

UNI

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