“Last month, the national leadership had asked the state party unit to zero-in on one candidate as a probable from each of the three seats that the Congress will contest from after it submitted a panel of three to five names for consideration to the Central Election Committee,” said a senior leader, adding: “Several developments have taken place since then; the party is understood to have finalised Aggarwal from Chandni Chowk, Dikshit from Northeast and Raj from Northwest Delhi, pending final approval from the national leadership considering that they have an edge over other possible picks since they are all former MPs.” Of the seven Lok Sabha segments in Delhi, Congress is contesting from the Chandni Chowk, Northeast and Northwest Delhi constituencies; its INDIA ally, the AAP, will contest from South, East, West, and New Delhi — for each of which it has declared its respective candidates.

Sources said the panel of probable candidates from Chandni Chowk included leaders Aggarwal, Alka Lamba, Harishankar Gupta, Mangat Ram Singhal and Dikshit. Leaders such as Krishna Tirath, Raj Kumar Chauhan, Raj, Surender Kumar had been suggested for the reserved Northwest Lok Sabha seat.

From the Northeast seat, the state unit had suggested fielding Delhi Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely, Chaudhary Anil Kumar, Bhisham Sharma, and Mateen Ahmed; Lovely had later opted out from the race for a Lok Sabha ticket.

Indicating how hopeful it was from an electoral point of view, the party’s national president will return to the Trans-Yamuna area for the second time after a show of strength early February. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is scheduled to launch a campaign on Wednesday in the Northeast Delhi constituency.

As part of this, Kharge will go door-to-door to distribute party literature detailing the ‘Guarantee Cards’ which will include Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi’s five ‘Nyay Guarantees’ promised during his Bharat Jodo Nyay rally aimed at the youth, women, workers, farmers, and Bhagidari.