Qadian, July 9
There has been a virtual revolt in the Qadian Municipal Committee (MC) with three BJP councillors --- Harbhajan Singh, Kamlesh Rani and Sukhwinder Pal Singh --- joining the Congress thus giving the latter a majority in the house.

Earlier, there were eight SAD-BJP councillors while seven were aligned with the Congress in the 16 member house. One councillor had won on an Independent ticket. Qadian MLA Lakhbir Singh Lodhinangal, who has a vote in the house, voted in favour of the SAD-BJP councillors following which Balwinder Kaur of the SAD was elected the President.

Following this development, the Congress has now taken its strength to 11 members in the 16-member house. The Congress today held a special meeting of the General House and moved a no-confidence motion against President Balwinder Kaur. The party has also sent a requisition notice to the Gurdaspur Deputy Commissioner Pirthi Chand and to the Executive Officer of the Qadian MC.

Sources disclose that the defections from the BJP to the Congress were engineered by senior Congress leader Fateh Jung Singh Bajwa.

Later in the evening, Fateh Jung Singh held a press conference at Gurdaspur in the presence of all the 11 councillors. He claimed that on the alleged instructions of the President Balwinder Kaur, false cases were registered against two Congress councillors.

Gurdaspur, June 9
Qadian MLA Lakhbir Singh Lodhinangal is a disgruntled man these days. After exhausting all options, the MLA is thinking of putting in his papers due to the alleged “interference by a top SAD functionary” in his assembly segment.

A livid Lodhinangal said today that a senior SAD leader, holding a constitutional post, was unduly obstructing developmental works in his assembly segment. The MLA, who is playing the role of a senior police officer in a yet to be released Punjabi movie, said on the instructions of the SAD leader, officers of the district administration had stopped listening to him.

“Even the genuine demands of residents of my area are being overlooked just because I am the MLA of Qadian, a fact which is not being liked by people close to the powers-that-be in the Akali Dal,” he said.

Sources disclose that due to the delimitation of assembly segments, a major portion of the Fatehgarh Churian Vidhan Sabha seat had been transferred to the newly created assembly segment of Baba Dera Nanak. In the Punjab assembly, Fatehgarh Churian is represented by Speaker Nirmal Singh Kahlon. Under the new delimitation exercise, scores of villages of Fatehgarh Churian have also been shifted to Qadian assembly segment.

A senior SAD leader disclosed that the villages that had been shifted to Qadian from Fatehgarh Churian were the bone of contention between Lodhinangal and Kahlon. Although Lodhinangal, who remained Chairman of the Batala Improvement Trust when he was in the Congress, did not name any leader whom he claimed to be “interfering” in Qadian, it was clear that he was pointing a finger at the Speaker.

When contacted, Kahlon said Lodhinangal’s assertions were “completely baseless.” He maintained that the Qadian MLA was trying to create a situation which could turn out to be detrimental to the interests of the SAD in the next assembly elections. He added, “I am the Speaker of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha and a responsible person. Why should I hinder developmental works in Lodhinangal’s assembly segment? I have nothing to do with his area. I am busy with my own work in Fatehgarh Churian and even yesterday I attended a couple of functions held in my assembly segment.”

On his part Lodhinangal, who was earlier aligned with the Congress till he joined the SAD in 2006, claimed that if more pressure was put on him he would resign as MLA but would not leave the party fold. “I will quit from the assembly but will remain loyal to the SAD. I have been elected by the people of Qadian and it will be better for me if I work for the development of the area. However, if somebody obstructs my working, I am ready to call it quits,” he said.

Jalandhar, July 9
Waking up from their slumber, the Municipal Corporation authorities today conducted a raid at two illegal parking lots in the city and even impounded a few vehicles.

This afternoon, the tehbazari wing of the MC got active and took action at two illegal parking sites - outside the DC office on the road leading towards Master Tara Singh Nagar and opposite Satnam Motors at BMC Chowk. The contractors were also warned against continuing any extortion from the vehicle owners.

Giving a signal to the public, the MC officials also impounded two cars and a few motorcycles from the parking sites. Despite a show cause notice from Deputy Commissioner Priyank Bharti, the contractor in front of the tehsil gate had been collecting money illegally from the public for getting their vehicles parked on the road.

The DC had found that the contractor, who had been authorised for parking within the complex, had also been illegally running a parking lot outside the complex on the road.

The administration got into action after a city-based lawyer Rajinder Bhatia had asked for information regarding authorised parking lots from the Municipal Corporation in reply to which he found that 11 sites had been allocated for the purpose, the contracts for which too had expired. MC Commissioner Vinay Bublani said an auction for parking lots would be held on July 22. He said checks on illegal parking lots would become a regular exercise from now on. He said only a few vehicles had been lifted from the sites which were even released later in the day.

“The idea was not to harass them but to tell them that the parking area is illegal,” he said. RTI activist Bhatia had demanded criminal action against the defaulters. 

Hoshiarpur, July 9
The inhabitants of Gautam Nagar and Shalimar Nagar have come out strongly against setting up of a mobile tower on the first floor of an old building claming that tower poses danger to their lives.

The tower has been erected without seeking a no objection certificate from the authorities concerned and thus illegal, alleged the residents.

Inhabitants Romesh Chnder Sharma, Prof Raghubir Singh and Kashmira Singh Dhadwal alleged that the tower was erected while giving a wrong impression in the neighbourhood that a solar water heating facility was being installed there.

Most of the work was done in the night when the residents were fast asleep.

They reported the matter to the Deputy Commissioner and Punjab State Human Rights Commission to get the “illegal” tower dismantled. They also met the Executive Officer of the Hoshiarpur Municipal Council on June 4 for the removal of the tower, but the latter did nothing in this regard.

They apprehended that a strong squall or an earthquake may bring down the tower which may result in loss of lives and damage to the property. The EO could not be contacted.

Jalandhar, July 9
With the arrest of three youths, the district police claimed to have solved the murder case of Ashok Kumar here today. The body of Ashok Kumar was found along the railway line under a railway overbridge near Chugitti Chowk on the GT Road on Monday.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP) S.K. Kalia said the assailants had been identified as Maninder Singh, Vijay and Rohit Verma, all local residents.

The trio, during interrogation, admitted to have hacked Ashok Kumar to death and stole a truck (HR-38R-3557) loaded with scrap from him.

The assailants entered the vehicle after breaking windowpanes. Ashok Kumar was asleep along the GT Road when the assailants struck. They dumped the body on the railway track and sped away with the vehicle, the ADCP said. The assailants later sold the scrap and abandoned the vehicle at Buani village. On the very next day, the truck owner lodged a complaint with Division No 8 police station claiming that Ashok Kumar escaped with his truck.