Chandigarh, Apr 4 (PTI) Congress Friday evening announced former Punjab Minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu as the party candidate for contesting the Ludhiana (West) Assembly bypoll.

Ashu (54), working president of Punjab Congress, is a prominent Hindu face of the party and has represented the Ludhiana (West) seat earlier.

Also Read | Bengaluru: Girl Mistakes Herbicide for Aloe Vera Juice, Dies After Consuming It.

His candidature for contesting the bypoll from the seat was approved by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, according to a party statement.

The Ludhiana West seat fell vacant following the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi in January. The date for the bypoll has not been announced yet.

Also Read | DRDO Successfully Flight Tests Army Version of Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (See Pics).

AAP had earlier named Rajya Sabha member Sanjeev Arora as its candidate for the Ludhiana West assembly bypoll.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)