Jalandhar, May 11
Campaigning for the Jalandhar (SC) parliamentary seat concluded today with candidates trying their best to reach out to maximum number of voters. Leaving nothing to chance, the candidates put up a show of might along with their family members in the last leg of campaigning.

If SAD candidate Hans Raj Hans held a road show at Jyoti Chowk, the Congress candidate Mohinder Singh Kaypee addressed the public at Rainak Bazaar with a battery of party workers thereby targeting the urban voters. The BSP held a rally on the 120 feet road near Babreek Chowk seeking votes for the party candidate Surjeet Singh. The rally was addressed by BSP National General Secretary Narinder Kashyap and BSP state President Avtar Singh Karimpuri along with other party workers.

Earlier in the day, the SAD-BJP alliance candidate Hans Raj Hans kicked off his campaign at 2 pm with thumping dhol beats and loud party slogans from the old Sheikhan Bazaar then moved to Jyoti Chowk and Company Bagh Chowk and met the electorate. He was accompanied by city Mayor Rakesh Rathore, senior Deputy Mayor Kamaljit Singh Bhatia, district BJP President Ravi Mahendru and a score of other SAD-BJP alliance party workers. Hans was seen greeting the residents with folded hands and seeking votes in the name of development.

At the same time, Congress candidate Mohinder Singh Kaypee along with a horde of party workers reached the interiors of the city and sought votes in the name of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Kaypee addressed the voters at Rainak Bazaar, Sheikhan Bazaar and Attari Bazaar. The enthusiastic party workers cheered the Congress candidate with loud sloganeering.

Even the family members were seen campaigning hand in hand along with the candidates at different places. Kaypee’s daughter Rupali Kaypee went to CT Institutions and urged the youth not only to vote for the Congress but exercise their franchise as well. “I urged the youngsters to cast their votes in favour of my father and play an active role in the formation of the next government at the Centre,” she said.

Similarly, BSP candidate Surjeet Singh’s wife Surinder Kaur toured the Jalandhar Cantt assembly segment before the beginning of the BSP rally in the morning. His son Sandeep Singh paid a visit to Nakodar along with party workers and sought votes for his father.

Former minister Gurkanwal Kaur maintained that her door-to-door campaigns in the interiors of Jalandhar Cantonment, Sadar Bazaar and Deep Nagar in the past couple of days was more of a rally as the residents virtually swarmed to meet Mohinder Singh Kaypee.

“The people of Punjab are irritated from the tyrannical governance of the Sad-BJP government. The outcome of results will be in our favour and Kaypee will win with a good lead from Jalandhar constituency,” she added.

Yesterday, Jalandhar Cantonment MLA Jagbir Brar also conducted a rally in favour of party candidate Hans Raj Hans in the interiors of the Jalandhar Cantt. Putting a joint face among the public scores of youth on motorbikes escorted Hans who was atop an open vehicle.

OC adds from Nawanshahr: The leaders and workers of different political parties, here, tried to make the best use of the last day of the campaigning.

To make up for the ailing former parliamentary secretary, Parkash Singh, his wife Gur Iqbal Kaur and teenager son, Angad Singh strived hard in spearheading the campaign of the Congress nominee, Ravneet Singh Bittu. They visited a number of villages today. “An overwhelming response from the voters and a number of SAD workers at different villages joining the Congress just two days before the polling will certainly boost our strength,” claimed Angad Singh.

Lalit Mohan Pathak (Ballu), former MC chief, and Vipin Taneja, district Congress (Urban) president, also campaigned vigorously to create a conducive environment in favour of Bittu in the town.

Though, in the wake of aggressive campaigning by the Congress in the town during the past few days, the SAD-BJP campaign was surprisingly being felt as dormant, but with the efforts of die-hard SAD-BJP workers like SGPC member Gurbaksh Singh Khalsa, Param Khalsa, Shanker Duggal, Bittu Walia, the SAD-BJP workers were mobilised to bolster the poll campaign in the town. The group of local SAD-BJP leaders was seen going door to door for seeking votes in favour of SAD nominee, Dr. Daljit Singh Cheema.

Jalandhar, May 11
For the past few days, voters from the Gujjar-dominated Balachaur area had been hoping to see their community’s favourite Congress leader Sachin Pilot but their hopes dashed today with the campaigning coming to an end.

While earlier there were reports that Sachin could accompany Rahul to the election rally that was held on Saturday but that did not happen. Pilot’s rally would have been a major boost for Congress candidate Ravneet Singh Bittu who perhaps had been optimistic of his visit even today.

“We were expecting Sachin Pilot with Raninder Singh today. We kept on waiting for them till this morning. Around noon, Pilot expressed his willingness to come but we did not want him at the last moment that too when we were unprepared with the arrangements. We had been planning a 7,000 plus gathering for him which could not be possible at the eleventh hour. We also did not want the results of the Rahul’s rally to go waste,” he said.

As of now, the Gujjar vote in the area remains split between three leaders of the community - Ch Nand Lal, sitting SAD MLA and third time winner, his Congress rival Ram Krishan Kataria and CPM candidate Mahan Singh Rori, who too is a Gujjar.

According to an estimate, there are nearly 45,000 Hindu Gujjars in the area, comprising of 55 per cent voters here. There are a few representatives of the community also settled in Nangal, Garhshankar, Anandpur Sahib, Morinda and Ropar.

Pilot had earlier also not been able to make it to the area during the last assembly polls when Kataria’s daughter-in-law Santosh Kataria had been contesting from the Balachaur constituency. People had gathered in large numbers to see him at a rally but Pilot had failed to fly due to bad weather. He had, of course, made it in the area post assembly polls along with Capt Amarinder Singh at a function organised by Baba Bhooriwala at Pojewal.

For Bittu, who has otherwise had been carrying out campaign quite aggressively, Rahul’s rally was the only major show of strength. Capt Amarinder Singh had accompanied him only during the filing of his nomination papers. He was supposed to visit the area on May 9 to hold a series of rallies, but again the date clashed with Rahul’s visit and all other rallies except the one at Mohali were cancelled.

For SAD candidate Daljeet Singh Cheema, deputy CM Sukhbir Badal had been a major support holding quite a few rallies across the entire stretch of the area.

Nawanshahr, May 11
The district police has made elaborate arrangements for ensuring peaceful, free and impartial polling in the Nawanshahr, Banga, Balachaur assembly segments falling under Anandpur Sahib parliamentary constituency in the district.

This was stated by SSP Rakesh Aggarwal while talking to mediapersons here today. While divulging details, Aggarwal said 2,400 police personnel had been put on duty to provide security at 388 polling booths in the district. Besides Punjab police, 16 companies of paramilitary forces had also been deployed in the district for the purpose, he said, adding that 105 polling booths had been identified as sensitive in the district and the paramilitary forces had been deployed there. As many as 41 patrolling parties had also been constituted.

“Besides, all 2,300 licenced arms have been taken into account, keeping in view the apprehension of any poll-related violence”, said the SSP, adding that, 1,800 licenced arms had been deposited and the remaining licenced arms after completing verification had been exempted from depositing under different categories. The cops have been given instructions in detail for making them aware of the “do’s and don’ts”.

Jalandhar, May 11
Taking preventive security measures against any terrorist activity in the district, the District Magistrate (DM) has imposed Section 144 of the CrPC directing the owners of cyber cafes to maintain records of visitors to their establishments. The section will remain in force for two months starting from May 11 to July 10.

The DM, Ajeet Singh Pannu, in a press note, said certain anti-social elements, criminals and terrorists might use the email facility at these cyber cafes to mislead the security/investigating agencies, create panic in public, endanger security of public, VIPs, besides government institutions. The DM has also issued a seven-point guidelines for the cyber cafe owners to be complied with strictly. The violators of the guidelines will be dealt with strictly, the DM warned.

Jalandhar, May 11
Eleven-year-old Ranjodh Singh was rescued within 12 hours of his abduction here today. Though two hired goons managed to flee, the police nabbed the third accomplice.

Manmohan Singh of Lidhran village, allegedly the mastermind behind the kidnapping, took the step with an intension of getting his money back from the boy’s father Avtar Singh, a travel agent, who had allegedly duped him of Rs 5 lakh sometime back.

According to sources, Manmohan hired three men --- Davinder Singh, Major Singh of Lighran village and Bunty of Chhoti Perjian village --- for Rs 5,000 to carry out the task. SP (II) Sarabjit Singh said the trio abducted Ranjodh from his house at 9 pm on Sunday and took him to a place at Nangal Jeewan area near Nakodar. Subsequently, they made a phone call to his mother Baldeep Kaur demanding the ransom of Rs 5 lakh.

But the mother informed the police after which a trap was laid to nab the culprits. DSP (D) Inderjit Singh with the assistance of telecommunication companies managed to trace the location of abductors.

As per the plan, the DSP accompanied Baldeep Kaur with the money to the decided site (near Lidhran village) and managed to arrest kidnapper Davinder Singh after rescuing Ranjodh. However, two other abductors fled from the spot. The mastermind is also absconding. A case under sections 364 and 34 of the IPC has been registered.