Bathinda, June 22
The ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP combine today swept the first ever elections for the Bathinda Municipal Corporation (BMC) by wresting 38 of the total number of 50 seats amid allegations of booth capturing and clashes.

Final Tally SAD 24 BJP 14 Cong 06 Indp 06

The opposition Congress and independents shared 6 seats each. This was the first election for the BMC that was created sometime ago.

While the SAD bagged 24 of the 28 seats on which it had fielded its candidates, their ally BJP won 14 of the 22 seats that it got under the seat sharing formula.

Widespread allegations of booth capturing were received particularly from the wards located across the railway lines where police remained "mute spectator" as the SAD activists barged into some polling booths and also vainly tried to carry away the electronic voting machines (EVMs). However the SAD leadership pooh-poohed these allegations.

At some places Congress candidates alleged that they were chased out of the polling stations as activists of the Student Organisation of India (SOI) indulged in fake voting. At least eight persons received minor injuries in skirmishes. Son of a senior SAD leader roughed up a sub-inspector of police who tried to 
intervene.

A Congress candidate, Jagrup Singh Gill, managed to win from ward number 44 despite daylong attempts of SAD activists to capture the polling station. Gill has twice been president of the local Municipal Council and also chairman of the Improvement Trust.

There were allegations that a senior SAD leader led a group of youth to ward number 29 where they chased away the opposition supporters from a polling both and indulged in fake voting. The polling staff did not take any action to get the voting nullified.

It was alleged that some SOI activists moved from booth to booth to rig the election.

Activists of SAD-BJP combine reportedly clashed with Congress sympathizers at many places.

SAD winner Baljeet Singh Bir Behman was the front runner for the Mayor's slot, while the BJP might get the senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor slots.

The results indicate that the Congress, which had won the Bathinda assembly seat last year with a margin of over 14,000 votes, had miserably failed to retain the edge this time. Moreover the party went to the BMC elections as a house divided. The PPCC chief Rajinder Kaur Bhattal addressed only one rally in the town and suddenly skipped the next day.

On the other hand, contrary to the recent zila parishad elections, the SAD and BJP put up a united fight to the Congress. Chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and ministers belonging to the SAD and BJP campaigned here.

Shakuntla wins by 2 votes

Bathinda, June 22
Ram Singh Tungwali, Congress candidate from ward number 3 has alleged that Gurpreet Singh Maluka, Zila Parishad member and son of former SAD (B) minister, Sikandar Singh Maluka, along with 200 armed men, beat up one of the Congress polling agents at booth number 8, located in Government Elementary School, Mata Jeevi Nagar today.

Speaking to TNS, Tungwali alleged, "Around noon, Maluka's son, along with atleast 200 armed men entered the polling booth and tried to capture the booth. When our polling agent stopped them from doing so, Gurpreet manhandled him and his men beat him up."

Gurpreet, however, refuted the allegations saying, "The Congress polling agent was a government employee and when he asked him to leave, he threatened our men."

Harminder Singh Samagh, an Independent candidate from ward number 12 has alleged that SAD men attacked his polling agent, captured the booth and polled bogus votes. He has demanded repolling in his ward.

Ward number 11 Congress candidate, Gurcharan Singh has also written a letter to Chief Election Commissioner, in which he alleged that the SAD men destroyed a vehicle and injured its driver.

Bathinda, June 22
Amid rigging allegations, the SAD-BJP candidates almost made a clean sweep in the II zone, comprising ward number 13-25.

Congress and Independent candidates levelled charges bogus voting, violating election rules and being ill treated by the police on the orders of the candidates belonging to the ruling party.

AS per agreement between coalition partners, out of the total 13 wards, eight were contested by the BJP and five were fought by the SAD candidates. The SAD-BJP candidates won with handsome margin, except losing one seat of ward number 24 to an Independent candidate, Darshan Kumar, an Ex-MC.

DTO, Bathinda, Manish Kumar, who was RO said, “Every thing was well arranged to hold free and fair elections and hopefully it has been completed.”

Jubilant over victory, Sarup Chand Singla, area in-charge of SAD and Kamal Sharma, the state general secretary of the BJP termed the victory as a result of developmental work done by their party.

Bathinda, June 22
Widespread violence, alleged rigging and booth capturing today marred the BMC elections even as supporters of SAD and Congress fought pitched battles in various wards of the city that left five persons injured.

Police picked up a fake polling agent of Akali candidate Ahbey Khanganwal when supporters of Congress candidate Jagroop Gill objected to his presence in the polling booth of Ward No. 44.

Panic gripped in the ward when some workers of the ruling party along with activists of Students Organisation of India (SOI) from Patiala captured the booth. They even tried to carry away EVMs from polling booth where polling was subsequently stopped for half an hour. They did not spare even crew of electronic media.

Trouble started around 11:30 am when word spread that the Akali workers, who had been allegedly roped in from Patiala, tried to capture booth number 113 of the ward. Following this, the Congress workers resisted Akalis’ move and had a scuffle with Congress workers resulting in minor injuries to Congress workers.

A senior Akali leader allegedly barged into the polling station in Ward No. 38 and virtually captured the booth. Congress candidate Nahar Singh had to withdraw his polling agents in protest against the alleged highhandedness by the ruling party leaders. 

Bathinda, June 22
The local Congress MLA Harminder Singh Jassi accompanied by candidates and their supporters today cried foul and alleged that polling was rigged in most of the wards.

Jassi made a strong protest and complained to the officiating DC Vijay Jade that mob beat up and roughed up congressmen in many wards and gate crashed into the booths for bogus voting.

Jassi said instead of undergoing this farcical exercise of holding elections the government should nominate members. “I have not seen such ugly violence and lawlessness even in states like UP and Bihar said peeved Jassi”.

Though officiating DC Vijay Jade assured him and the congress candidates that there complaints would be forwarded to the Election Commission and looked into. He said justice would be done after verifying the complaints.

Barnala, June 22
To protest against the killing of a Sikh man by the body guards of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, hundreds of Sikh activists led by Shiromani Akali Dal Amritsar (Panch Pardhani), blocked the road traffic for two hours at Sanghera, 10 km from here on Barnala-Ludhiana road, today.

Addressing the protesters, Panch Pardhani leader Jasbir Singh Dango alleged that state government had failed to safeguard the interests of the Sikhs. Instead of arresting the Dera-chief for his anti-Sikh activities, the state government has provided protection to his deras in the state.

Bhola Singh Sanghera and Charnjeet Kaur also addressed the public and demanded the immediate arrest of the Dera-chief, who was involved in several cases of murder and rape. — OC

Rampura Phul, June 22
“The election code of conduct is in force, so I cannot make any announcement for your area,” said Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal here today. He was the chief guest at the function organised by the Punjab Brahmin Sabha’s local unit to celebrate the Bhagwan Parshuram Jayanti.

The CM along with Sikander Singh Maluka, district president, SAD (B), who was also present on the occasion, tried their best but could not help giving the religious occasion a political colour. Reason, the municipal elections on June 30 for 16 wards here. One candidate of the SAD (B) has already been elected unopposed to the 17-member civic body.

On the occasion, president of the Sabha Devi Dyal Prashar apprised the CM of the local problems and provided him with the Sabha’s charter of demands. He appealed to the CM that Sanskrit and Hindi should be made compulsory subjects till class X as it was for Punjabi.

Badal urged the community members to follow the path shown by their guru, stand against atrocities and work for the uplift of society.

Speaking on their demands, he said, “We are preparing a master plan and would make phase-wise development. Leave alone the basic necessities; there are plans to provide privileges also.”

Assuring the Sabha that their genuine demands would be accepted following the elections, Maluka said, “Earlier the Sabha had supported Congress. But now, their affiliation to the SAD (B) is on the rise.”

Providing the gathering a hint on whom to vote, the CM said even if funds were allotted the members in municipal committee may not use them rightly. However, in the end, he could not resist asking the gathering to help SAD (B) candidates win the poll.

Fazilka, June 22
Satnam Singh’s joy knew no bounds when he learned that he had won a cash prize of Rs 51 lakh through the lottery ticket that he had purchased a week back for Rs 50. Singh (24), who works as a labourer and is a resident of Mohar Singhwala village, 22 km from here, plans to use the windfall to pay off the debt that he had raised to bear the expenses of his two sisters’ marriage.

Roop Lal, a lottery vendor here, informed that Satnam had purchased a lottery ticket of Punjab government’s monthly lottery about a week back for Rs 50. He went to Satnam’s village to give him the news. But it was not an easy job to locate the dilapidated house. Satnam was not at his place and had gone out to labour at someone’s fields in the same village. His overjoyed father Lal Singh took the vendor to the fields to break the good news to Satnam.

The winner could hardly believe his ears when he was informed that he had won the first prize.

Talking to this correspondent about his plans about using the fortune, Satnam said his first priority was to get rid of the debt that he raised to marry his two sisters. Then, he would purchase a piece of land for better living.

Satnam and his family were grateful to the Almighty for the prize, which would free them from the shackles of poverty and misery.