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Overcast skies send candidates door to door
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Congress to bank on Capt to draw crowds
Cong in total disarray in Punjab, says BJP
Denial of district status key issue
Capt: Efforts on to rein in rebels
Bajwa brothers sink differences
Voters want drug menace checked
Rise in number of babus in fray
Sticking to EC guidelines
Speaker speaks of progress, locals say could’ve done more
Channi queers the pitch for sister-in-law
Marathon that didn’t take off
Unaccounted cash
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Tapa Mandi, January 15 While the native Khuddi Khurd village of Guru, who resigned recently from the post of Principal Secretary to Chief Minister to jump into the poll fray, is part of the constituency, Sadiq, who remained associated with the Congress as a bard for its rallies, started his singing career from Bhadaur. Both remained on the fringes of the political arena before they finally decided to throw their hats in the ring and seek the people's mandate to reach the assembly. Guru held the most important administrative post while Sadiq pulled crowds for the Congress during rallies, thus, ensuring the party leaders had a receptive audience. Though both the political greenhorns have achieved success in their own fields, they know the going may not be as easy in politics. No wonder, they begin their day as early as possible by holding meetings with their campaign managers: friends from Chandigarh in case of Guru and son-in-law Suraj for Sadiq. This is followed by calling on party supporters and then hitting the road to meet voters and to hold public meetings. And that's not the end of the day. The evening engagements with party workers and voters at their respective residences keep them busy till as late as midnight. While the former babu prefers to dress in a jacket and trousers, the bard dons white 'kurta pyjama' with a white turban. The difference between the two is not limited to dress code, their campaign style too varies. Guru nods while meeting voters, albeit remaining slightly aloof, Sadiq, on the other hand, goes about greeting people with a hug or touching the feet of the elderly. Often elders stop him and ask him to sing a line from his popular song "Mukk gayi afeem dabbi ton yaaron, ajj koi amli da dang maaro…" And he readily obliges. "I began my singing career from Bhadaur. I first got to sing in a Ram Lila function and play the 'tumbi' on stage. This place is very lucky for me and I am sure I will achieve success in politics too," he says. "Though it is traditionally an Akali seat, the SAD failed to bring about any development here. If I win, I will ensure better civic, education and health amenities." Targeting Sadiq, Guru retorts: "Being an MLA is different from entertaining people. It's about deliverance. I am a son of the soil and will ensure development in the area." If dissidence in the party is cause of concern for Sadiq, Guru is "hurt" at the Election Commission keeping the seat under scanner and declaring it as sensitive because of him being a candidate. Post-delimitation, the profile of the constituency has changed manifold. It is a major reason why both the candidates are leaving no stone unturned. Before the delimitation process, Bhadaur had remained an Akali bastion and had always returned an Akali candidate to the assembly. But now with Tapa Mandi -- a Congress stronghold -- being included in the constituency, the going may not be that easy for the SAD.
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Overcast skies send candidates door to door
Chandigarh/Jalandhar, January 15 “We held a meeting in a cattle-shed and later went door to door as the rain just wouldn’t stop”, said Bir Devinder Singh, People’s Party of Punjab candidate from Mohali. He, however, claimed the rain had failed to dampen the morale of his supporters. Sanjha Morcha leader Joginder Dayal questioned the decision of the Election Commission to hold elections in January, invariably the coldest month. Dayal said the second week of February would have been more convenient with the weather turning relatively warm then. Dayal feared that if the cold wave persisted, there would be a low turnout at the polling booths on the election day “which will not be good for democracy.” On the overcast skies, former Local Bodies Minister and BJP candidate from Jalandhar Central Manoranjan Kalia quipped: “Upar bhi Badal hain, niche bhi Badal hai (referring to CM Parkash Singh Badal).” Kalia claimed that rain was no dampener and the “political atmosphere is getting warmer each day in the chilling winter.” Almost similar sentiments were expressed by former minister and Congress candidate from Jalandhar North Avtar Henry. “Rain has had no adverse impact on my electioneering.” He said he had gone on a door-to-door campaign at Lakshmi Pura and Dhan Mohalla from 9 am to 3.30 pm. His rival BJP candidate KD Bhandari, accompanied by his wife Meena and supporters, met voters at Ram Nagar, Maqsoodan, BSF Colony and Bikram Pura at their homes. Former cop and PPP candidate from Nakodar Kanwaljit Singh Kakra went door to door on his motor cycle. Sportsperson-turned-politician Pargat Singh, SAD candidate from Jalandhar Cantonment, said: “Jadon match hi laga hove, tan phir barish da ki a (Who cares for the rain when the match is on). He said he had campaigned door to door in the forenoon.
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EC shifts 4 SHOs
Chandigarh, January 15 Usha Sharma, CEO, said besides, BDPOs of Chamkaur Sahib and Rajpura, and DEO of Nawansahar Amrik Singh had been shifted. Swaran Singh, Additional SE, city division, Kapurthala, had also been transferred. On the directions of the EC, the expense incurred on the distribution of peanuts and sweets after a rally of SAD candidate Darbara Singh Guru at Dhilwan village in Barnala had been added to the candidate’s expense account. Meanwhile, the time slots to campaign on Doordarshan and AIR has been given to the recognised political parties through a draw of lots. The EC has issued guidelines on the use of aircraft/helicopters, during the poll campaign. A spokesperson for the Punjab CEO said if the candidate or any worker of the party/candidate also travelled in the helicopter/aircraft of the star campaigners, then 50 per cent of the expenditure on the vehicle would be booked to the expense account of the candidate concerned. He said if any attendant, including security guard, medical attendant of the star campaigner, travelled with him/her and did not play any role in the elections, then the expense would not be added to the candidate’s account. Meanwhile, Kapurthala DC-cum-DEO Paramjit Singh told The Tribune, "Begowal SHO Sukhminder Singh and Bholath SHO Harbhajan Singh have been shifted and new appointments of Dev Raj as Begowal SHO and Gopal Singh as Bholath SHO have been made with immediate effect”. Paramjit Singh said the CEO had asked him to look into the complaint filed by Khaira regarding seizure of liquor. "I had asked Bholath SDM-cum-RO Navjot Singh to probe the entire incident. After his report, the CEO decided to shift the two SHOs from Bholath constituency with immediate effect," he added. In his complaint, Khaira had also sought shifting of the Kapurthala SSP who is former SAD MP Rajmohinder Singh Majithia's son-in-law and a close relative of Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal's brother-in-law Bikram Majithia. (With inputs from
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Congress to bank on Capt to draw crowds
Chandigarh, January 15 The industrial town has a large number of voters from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. The BJP has had ‘dream girl’ Hema Malini campaigning for the party in Ludhiana. The Congress, which submitted its list of 40 star campaigners today, a day prior to the deadline, has listed all its serving MPs as star campaigners. Among the heavyweights are party president Sonia Gandhi, Pranab Mukherjee, Rahul Gandhi, Capt Amarinder Singh, general secretary incharge Gulchain Singh Charak and Congress Legislature Party Leader Rajinder Kaur
Bhattal. The Congress has roped in young leaders such as Jyotiraditya Scindia, Jatin Prasad and Sachin Pilot.The latter is expected to campaign in Gujjar-dominated constituencies. Other youth leaders Ashok Tanwar and Mukul Wasnik will target the Dalit vote. Ghulam Nabi Azad and Salman Khurshid will try to work on the Muslim vote and Oscar Fernandes will campaign in Christian areas. Mohsina Kidwai will be incharge of Mahila Congress campaigning. Chief Ministers from neighbouring states would also pitch in with Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah and Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda also listed as star campaigners.
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Jyotiraditya Scindia, Sachin Pilot: Are expected to pull young voters l
Bhojpuri heroine Nagma: She is expected to help get votes of UP and Bihar migrants in Ludhiana l
Tanwar, Wasnik: They will work on the Dalit vote bank in the state
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Cong in total disarray in Punjab, says BJP
Chandigarh, January 15 Criticising the Congress for “propagating reservation on religious basis”, party general secretary and chief spokesman Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Constitution did not allow religion-based reservation. “The BJP is opposing this and the party welcomes the Election Commission of India’s initiative on the issue”. In Chandigarh to conduct a media workshop for party workers, equipping them with strategy and acumen to boost party’s poll prospects, the BJP leader expressed confidence in the prospects of the SAD-BJP alliance coming back to power. He was, however, evasive on the question of the BJP’s performance this time in comparison to the 2007 elections. The BJP has 19 legislators in the outgoing Vidhan Sabha. The party lost only four of the 23 seats it contested in 2007. Despite Prasad’s exuberance, the BJP is facing a lot of opposition in the urban areas owing to uneven development in the urban and rural areas. He said the Congress in Punjab was in total disarray with rebellion on over 28 seats. “The people can see that the Congress has no clear vision either for the state nor at the Centre and this lack of vision would be the cause for their dismal performance”. He further added that the SAD-BJP alliance had already declared its chief ministerial candidate, but the Congress was shying away from naming their nominee, taking the people for a ride. The BJP would highlight issues like FDI, infrastructural development and 40-year-old relationship with the SAD as their election planks. “We will not bank on the negative wave against the Congress, but highlight the 60 years of Congress rule versus five years of the SAD-BJP government”. Unlike the SAD which has been critical of the EC on more than one occasion, Prasad appreciated the role of the commission in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and other states saying that it was doing its duty diligently.
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Denial of district status key issue
The MLA had contended that with merely six villages shifted to the constituency from Education Minister Sewa Singh Sekhwan’s erstwhile Kahnuwan seat, nothing much had changed after delimitation and, hence, the BJP should retain the seat. Projects: “I have brought in funds for a new judicial and executive complex. Work on the judicial complex has already started,” says Sahni. He points out that the state government has released a grant of Rs 16.72 crore for the MC, controlled by his daughter Ambika Khanna, for setting up more streetlights, improving drinking water facilities and for installing tubewells. Residents say the town has been cleared of encroachments. They also credit Sahni with bringning warring Christian and Hindu hardliners in Batala to the negotiating table last February. Howerver, Sahni could not keep his promise to the voters to ensure that the insustrial township of Batala was accorded district status. VOX POPULI: Sahni’s adversaries say that he failed to get district status for Batala.“If Pathankot, also a BJP seat, can be made a district, why not Batala,” they ask. “It was the MLA’s inefficiency in dealing with the SAD leadership which resulted in Batala being denied the status of district,” say a section of BJP leaders. LOOKING BACK: Three-time MLA Sahni made his debut in 1992 by winning with a margin of 3,000 votes despite the fact that there was no alliance with the SAD at that time. In 1997, he retained the seat, winning by 13,000 votes while in 2002 he lost to Ashwani Sekhri by 11,000 votes. In 2007 he beat Sekhri by a mere 82 votes. The MLA admits he has not been able to do much to improve the sagging image of the industrial town. “On numerous occasions, I asked the Chief Minister to urge the Central Government to bring in a package for this border belt. I know this is an uphill task because the government will also have to simultaneously give a similar package to areas in Rajasthan which adjoin Pakistan. I have also written to the Railway Ministry to improve facilities at the Batala railway station,” Sahni claims. Residents are unhappy that drugs have made their way into the town and are allegedly being sold openly in the Gandhi camp area.
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Congress woos marginalised sections
Chandigarh, January 15 For weaker sections l
A dedicated Rs 100 crore venture capital fund to support enterprises by SC members l
Basic pension for senior citizens to be raised to Rs 400 per month, for widows Rs 500 per month and the physically challenged Rs 600 per month l
Marriage gift to grand-children of freedom fighters worth Rs 51,000 l
Pension for freedom fighters at Rs 6,000 per month l
Life insurance cover For women folk l
Every family to get Rs 15,000 on the birth of a girl-child birth and Rs 5,000 each on admission to Class I, Class VI, Class XI and Class XII l
Shagun scheme sum to be increased to Rs 31,000 For ex-servicemen l
Affairs of ex-servicemen to be directly under the CM l
No VAT on CSD items l
To pursue one rank, one pension demand with Centre For citizens’ safety l
To discard the practice of putting every police station under the local MLA l
It proposes one cyber police station per police zone and online system for complaints l
Promises to get 50,000 “false” cases against Congress workers investigated Education l
3 state-of-the-art senior secondary schools with modern infrastructure in each block l
Effective implementation of computer education l
Focus on improving English and maths skills among schoolchildren l
Online school education content in Punjabi Health sector l
3 new tertiary care hospitals besides five medical colleges and cancer hospitals l
Integrated health services from primary health centre to district and referral hospitals l
Full-time doctors and nurses at all primary health centres in rural areas For the youth l
Employment department of to focus on jobs l
100 skill development centres and free training for defence, police and security services Agriculture l
Functioning of horticulture department to be monitored by a committee under CM l
Special nurseries for processing varieties of orange plants and free saplings to be given to small farmers l
100 per cent subsidy on drip irrigation l
Three agro processing SEZs and agriculture technology information centre in each district l
An international dairy research institute besides 5 new dairy training centres l
A special revolving fund to encourage diversification Industry l
An effective single-window clearance system l
A mega petro-chemical complex at Bathinda Infrastructure
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Three inland container depots at Rajpura, Jalandhar and Amritsar. l
Rural roads to be widened to 18 ft l
Highways to be upgraded l
Transport policy of private bus operators to be reviewed
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Capt: Efforts on to rein in rebels
Chandigarh, January 15 PCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh said here today that the party had been successful in wooing back 29 dissident leaders and now 13 dissidents were left in the fray. Prominent among those who had fallen in line were Gurkanwal Kaur, Rajbir Padiala, Amarinder Libra, Maninder Singh Patti, Jagjivan Gill, Gurdeep Bhaini, Harmohinder Pradhan, Kanwaljit Lalli, Darbari Lal, Joginder Singh Mann and Rajanbir Singh. Sources said central observers, including Oscar Fernandes and BK Hari Prasad, were meeting dissidents and urging them to withdraw. Upinder Sharma had been offered the position of co-convener of the party’s poll campaign to persuade him to withdraw from Kotkapura. Capt Amarinder Singh said party president Sonia Gandhi would address election rallies at Moga and Kapurthala on January 19. Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi would visit the state on January 25, 27 and 28.
Bajwa brothers sink differences
Qadian, January 15 A livid Fateh had vowed to campaign for all Congress candidates from the Vidhan Sabha seats falling in the Gurdaspur parliamentary constituency, barring Qadian. Fateh has contested twice unsuccessfully from Kahunwan. Nearly 100 villages of this erstwhile seat have been shifted to Qadian. Chhotepur has decided to slug it out from this seat. Charanjit Kaur’s campaign managers are worried at the crowds that Chhotepur is drawing. Partap Bajwa , sensing a stiff competition from both Chhotepur and SAD’s SS Sekhwan, decided to molly-coddle Fateh.
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Voters want drug menace checked
Eightyeight of the total 117 villages of the erstwhile Dhariwal Vidhan Sabha seat have been shifted to Dera Baba Nanak. This will hold Langah, who already has been announced as the SAD candidate, in good stead as villagers remember him for opening several new educational institutes, including nursing colleges in these villages. Langah has also been instrumental in bringing funds from the Rural Development Department for the construction of new roads and widening of the existing ones in and around Dhariwal. If the SAD has Langah, the Congress has pitted former Minister Sukhjinder Randhawa from the seat. Earlier, he used to fight elections from Fatehgarh Churian and now since more than 50 villages of Fatehgarh Churian have been shifted to Dera Baba Nanak, Randhawa has some reasons to cheer. The man winning the new Vidhan Sabha seat will have to grapple with the problem of drugs among youth, which is rampant in the area. “There is a report that every third household in Dera Baba Nanak is on drugs. Holding of seminars by NGOs and Red Cross authorities is not going to solve the problem. We need to bring in industrial units to provide employment to the youth. Moreover, brining in a government college will be on my priority list,” said Randhawa. Projects: The people are happy with the way Langah has brought in new educational institutions. “I have upgraded several schools. Roads have been built in my tenure,” he said. However, the Agriculture Minister is quiet as far as bringing in new industrial units is concerned. “This is a border belt and businessmen are not ready to settle here because the atmosphere is not conducive to industry. Moreover, we have to improve the power supply in the area before we talk of setting new units,” he added. VOX POPULI: The residents are not happy with the manner in which the problem of drugs among youth is being tackled. “Apart from holding seminars, Langah has not done much. We need the new MLA to bring in some industrial units, which will generate employment. Dera Baba Nanak is a historical place but since the last six decades no development has taken place,” claimed sarpanch Baljit Singh.
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Rise in number of babus in fray
Manohar Singh Gill, who served as a Union Minister and is now sitting member of Rajya Sabha, is perhaps the only Punjab bureaucrat to have become member of the Upper House of Parliament. Kapur Singh (Indian Civil Service), Suchet Singh Aujla and Simranjt Singh Mann (police) have been members of the Lok Sabha. While the Director, Sports, Pargat Singh, earns the distrinction of being the first-ever Olympian to enter electoral politics post-Partition, former Director-General of Punjab Police, PS Gill, joins a long list of men in khaki who have forayed into electoral battles. His senior colleague Mohammed Izhar Alam, because of opposition to his candidature from within the party, had no choice but to get the SAD ticket for his wife Farzana to fight Razia Sultan, wife of Additional Director-General Mohammed Mustafa. Darbara Singh Guru, former Principal Secretary to Chief Minister bade adieu to civil service to enter poll politics as a SAD candidate. Som Parkash, who quit the civil service before the 2009 Lok Sabha elections and lost narrowly from Hoshiarpur, is back in the reckoning as the BJP candidate from Phagwara. SR Kler is another civil servant in the fray.
Do bureaucrats, including policemen, make good politicians? It seems of several bureaucrats who ventured into electoral politics in the past, only a handful were successful. Last time, a retired DSP, Bishambhar Dass , was elected on the BJP ticket from Narot Mehra in the Majha belt. However, Kuldip Singh Bhullar, son of MS Bhullar, a former DGP, lost the 2007 elections. Razia Sultan, wife of then Deputy IGP Mustafa, won as the Congress candidate from Malerkotla. While Gurdial Kaur Khangura, mother of Jassi Khangura, son-in-law of GS Aujla, a retired DGP, lost the 2002 elections as a Congress candidate from Kila Raipur, Jassi Khangura, won the seat five years later. But police officers venturing into politics is a pre-Independence phenomenon. Suchet Singh Aujla, who was an IGP in the erstwhile Kapurthala State, was elected to Parliament (1948-52) from Pepsu. Sant Parkash Singh, who was an IGP, unsuccessfully opposed Union Minister Swaran Singh from the Jalandhar parliamentary constituency in 1967 as the SAD candidate. Kapur Singh, ICS, contested from Ludhiana in 1962 on the Akali ticket and defeated Mangal Singh of the Congress. Simranjit Singh Mann has been the most successful of all bureaucrat-turned-politicians. He was elected from the Tarn Taran parliamentary constituency in 1989 with a massive mandate, polling 89.2 per cent votes. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha from Sangrur in 1999. Before joining politics, Mann was an IPS officer and quit in protest against Operation Bluestar. Anoop Singh Minhas, a Superintendent of Police, tried to get into the Punjab Vidhan Sabha from Jalandhar Cantonment as a nominee of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Mann). Sukhjinder Singh, who had been an Akali minister, was a DSP, before he was elected from Bholath more than once. Now his son is seeking re-election from there on the Congress ticket. Chitwant Singh, after serving with the police, was elected from Patiala district.
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Sticking to EC guidelines
Patiala/Sangrur, January 15 A round of the assembly segments of Malerkotla, Sangrur, Dhuri, Patiala (Rural), Samana and some other constituencies of Patiala and Sangrur districts during the past two days brought to light that majority of the candidates are refraining from defacing the public property with posters/banners and also the number of vehicles for election canvassing have been reduced to single digit. Congress candidate from Patiala (Rural) Brahm Mohindra, SAD candidate from Samana Surjit Singh Rakhra, BJP candidate from Rajpura Raj Khurana, Congress candidate from Samana Raninder Singh and many other candidates of the Congress, the SAD-BJP combine and the PPP are keeping low profile by drastically reducing the number of vehicles during canvassing. "We have not put up any banner and hoardings. You will not find even the stickers on our vehicles being used for campaigning", said PPP candidate from Dhuri Gaganjit Singh Barnala. Congress MP from Sangrur Vijay Inder Singla said, "Instead of holding mega rallies, we are touching the vital issues, as per the needs of each and every constituency by holding village-level meetings." Majority of the candidates said that since each and every candidate is under the scanner of the EC, they are preferring not to indulge in any such activity that violates the model code of conduct.
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People here want job-oriented projects
Traditionally, Sultanpur Lodhi is a strong SAD citadel as no other party except the Congress in 1992 when SAD had boycotted the election could win this seat since 1977. Dr Upinderjit Kaur has initiated various development projects here. However, Cheema claims, “No project was started to generate employment in this constituency”. Projects: Various projects like sub-tehsil at Talwandi Chaudhrian, Bebe Nanki Postgraduate Guru Nanak Dev University College at Mithra, a multi-disciplined academy at Jabbowal etc have been completed. Similarly, NABARD schools at Kheeranwali, Tibba and Andrisha villages and primary schools at Amritpur, Lawan, Mundi Chhana, Mand Aluwal and Kammewal have been opened. Further, 30 primary schools have been upgraded to middle schools and 12 middle schools upgraded to high schools in this constituency. Besides, work on ITI for girls at Khurda and Kheeranwali near Government Senior Secondary School, multispeciality hospital at Fattu Dhinga, regional GNDU centre, Food Craft Mithra, Bebe Nanki Marg and Adarsh School at Ucha village is under way. Sulatnpur Lodhi has been declared as a holy city. VOX POPULI: The voters are divided on Dr Upidnerjit Kaur’s performance. While some are satisfied with the development in the area, others say she failed to give the city a modern look. Further, no new industry has been set up in this area. There is also a demand that cigarette kiosks, liquor vends and meat shops should be banned in this holy city. LOOKING
BACK: Dr Upinderjit Kaur has already made a hat-trick of her victory from this seat. She defeated Rajanbir Singh of the Congress by a huge margin of 22,000 votes in 1997, and again by 5,500 votes in 2002. In the last assembly elections in 2007, she defeated Navtej Singh of the Congress by nearly 11,000 votes. In 1992, Congress candidate Gurmel Singh won by just getting 16,382 votes as the SAD had boycotted the elections.
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Speaker speaks of progress, locals say could’ve done more
The assembly segment has Jat Sikh votes in a majority but the Mazbhi Sikh voters, who over the years have converted to Christianity, cannot be ignored by any politician. The Christian community, which has nearly 35,000 votes, used to vote en bloc for the Congress but the demography changed after the 1997 elections when the SAD came to power. The SAD doled out sops to the community in various forms, following which a majority of the Christians voted for the Akalis in the 2002 and 2007 elections. Projects: The Speaker says he has constructed and re-carpeted many link roads of the area and new roads to Deras, as there are many in the area, have also been constructed. New sewerage pipes have been laid in Fatehgarh Churian town at a cost of Rs 13 crore, a development which has gone down well with the locals. As many as 375 new streetlights have come up in the town and three new tubewells have been established, which provide the residents with clean drinking water. A road divider has come up, which has removed traffic snarls in the town. The 24-km Batala-Fatehgarh Churian road has been widened and the 6 km stretch of the Kala Afghana-Dera Baba Nanak road has also been widened. A sarpanch said all the 180 villages falling in the assembly segment have been provided with gyms, which have become a hit with the youth. However, in the same breath, he disclosed that unemployment was rampant in the area, following which youth had no jobs and were getting hooked on to drugs. To this, the Speaker says, “We have given jobs to nearly 250 teachers and as many have been recruited as constables in the police.” The Speaker also claims that he had instructed all SHOs of the area to regularly raid chemists selling psychotropic substances to youngsters VOX POPULI: The residents are happy over the development but claim that what matters to them was employment for their children. “No industry means no employment which, in turn, leads to disillusionment among the youth. More and more people are getting hooked to drugs and the scenario is really frightening,” says a local chemist. LOOKING
BACK: In 2007, SAD’s Nirmal Singh Kahlon beat Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa of the Congress by 7,600 votes while in 2002, Randhawa wrested the seat beating Kahlon by 5,400 votes. In 1997, Kahlon beat Randhawa by 6,000 votes while in the 1992 elections, Lakhmir Singh Randhawa of the Congress beat Khariati Lal Marwaha of the BJP by 300 votes.
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Channi queers the pitch for sister-in-law
Nawansharh, January 15 Nawanshahr remained a stronghold of Congress stalwart Dilbagh Singh for a long time. After Dilbagh Singh’s death, his loyalists adopted Channi as his heir.Though the Congress allotted the ticket to Amar Kaur, Dilbagh Singh’s widow, his loyalists remained with Channi. Consequently, he contested his first-ever election as an Independent candidate against his mother. Despite a wave in favour of the SAD-BJP, he won the seat. Later, he was inducted into the Congress by the then PCC chief Rajinder Kaur Bhattal during the 1998 Lok Sabha poll. Channi was fielded against BJP’s Kamal Chaudhary in Hoshiarpur during the 1999 Lok Sabha poll and he again won the seat. After becoming MP, he resigned from the Nawanshahr seat. His cousin, Parkash Singh, was made the Congress nominee during the 2000 assembly byelection. In the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, Channi was denied the Congress ticket from Hoshiarpur as the seat was left for Congress’ alliance partner CPM. Channi, revolted against the party decision and contested from Hoshiarpur as the BSP candidate. He was the Congress nominee for the Hoshiarpur assembly seat in 2007, but lost to Tikshan Sood. He again staked claim for the Congress ticket from the Anandpur Sahib Lok Sabha seat in 2009 but could not succeed as the ticket was allotted to Youth Congress leader Ravneet Bittu. Channi claims he has contributed a lot for the development of the constituency. Neither Channi nor Babli make personal atacks against each other. Babli says her late husband Parkash Singh had stood by the people of the area through thick and thick for about a decade and now the people would stand by her. She says she and her son Angad have been in constant touch with the people.
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Poll snippets
Jalandhar: Nearly 65 per cent polling stations are sensitive in the nine assembly segments of Jalandhar district. According to sources, 833 out of the total 1,354 polling stations are sensitive. These polling stations have been further divided into four categories. While 97 of them are ‘vulnerable’, 318 ‘critical’, 114 ‘hypersensitive’ and 304 ‘sensitive’. When contacted, DC-cum-District Election Officer (DEO) Priyank Bharti told said elaborate arrangements would be made to ensure free and fair polling. The DEO held a meeting with election observers today for foolproof arrangements at all sensitive polling stations. Bharti said: “Paramilitary forces, video cameras and micro observers will be deployed at these stations to maintain law and order.” — Dharmendra Joshi Brar to support ex-DGP in Moga Moga: President of the Moga Municipal Council Barjinder Singh Brar has finally extended support to former DGP and SAD candidate Paramdeep Singh Gill, who is contesting the assembly elections from Moga. The former DGP along with veteran Akali leader KS Gill held a meeting with Brar and other councillors late last night, following which Brar, who was denied the party ticket from Moga, announced to support Gill. Brar said, “The party is supreme for me. The party leadership wanted Gill to contest from Moga and we, like the true soldiers, will ensure his win”. — Kulwinder Sandhu Gurdas wears clothes gifted by CM
Lambi: Though brothers Gurdas Singh Badal and Parkash Singh Badal are up against each other in the Lambi assembly constituency, the younger brother and PPP candidate Gurdas always wears clothes and accessories gifted by his elder brother while going for campaigning. When Gurdas steps out of his house about 8 am for campaigning never forgets to wear a dark grey long coat, white socks and sandals, which Badal had brought for him from the US when the latter’s wife was undergoing treatment there. “Pash (Badal) always used to bring something for me from abroad as a token of love. This long coat which I wear these days was gifted to me by Pash. Similarly, he had brought few pairs of cotton socks and sandals designed especially for diabetics, which are now really working for me,” said Gurdas. — Archit Watts Notice to Cong, SAD candidates Faridkot: The SAD candidate here has been issued a notice and asked to explain the distribution of wall clocks and school copies.The Congress candidate has also been sent a notice for his supporters raising slogans against election officials at the mini secretary complex here after they declined to reject SAD candidate Deep Malhotra’s nomination papers. In another case, Malhotra has made a complaint against Congress candidate for a slanderous campaign against him on the Facebook. — Balwant Garg
6 BJP councillors back SAD rebel Tarn Taran: Sharp difference in the ruling BJP-SAD came to the fore on Sunday with six local BJP councillors declaring their support to SAD rebel candidate Devinder Singh Sandhu, alias Lali Dhalla, from this seat. Devinder Singh, who was an aspirant for the SAD ticket, is contesting as an Independent. The BJP councillors -Prabhjit Singh Rataul, Jaswant Singh Padda, MC vice- president, Surinder Singh Mallhi, Gurpreet Singh Goldy, Seema Bhanot and Rajesh Joshi-declared their support for Devinder Singh at the inauguration of his election office here today. Baba Nirmal Singh, SGPC member, was also present on the occasion. BJP councilor Prabhjit Singh Rataul, district BJP general secretary, said they had decided to support to Devinder Singh to express their resentment against 'lawlessness' in the area. — Gurbaxpuri
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Marathon that didn’t take off
Patiala, January 15 Notably, the marathon was organised by the Old Friends Club in association with the Rotary Club, Rajpura, and they had announced cash prizes of Rs 3,100 and Rs 1,100 for the first and second position holders, respectively. They had also announced that they would gift free T-shirts to all the participants. In the morning, a large number of children gathered at the venue, but there were no arrangements. While a few students had been given T-shirts, others were going from one corner to the other asking for it to take part in the event. "Suddenly, we heard that the marathon began and children started running amidst heavy traffic as the organisers did not get the roads cleared," said Pardeep and Ravi, parents of children who had come to take part in the marathon. Abhishek, one of the organisers of the marathon, said the number of children who turned up was at least five times more than expected and therefore they had to cancel the marathon.
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Unaccounted cash
Fatehgarh Sahib, January 15 Meena said that the Sirhind police had seized Rs 9,46,500 from a resident of Gurgaon at a naka set up on the GT Road near Bhatmajra village. The SSP said the occupant of the car could not provide the source of the money. "The police has been carrying out searches of vehicles to detect unaccounted money and supply of drugs to be used in elections to influence voters. The directions of the Election Commission are being implemented strictly," he said. He said that they had informed the Joint Commissioner of the Income Tax Department and deposited the recovered money with the department.
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From dealing with politicians to themselves contesting poll, life has come full circle for Darbara Singh Guru, SAD candidate for Bhadaur
(Reserved) seat, and his Congress opponent Mohammad Sadiq.
Moderate to heavy rain in various parts of the state has hampered election campaigning.
The BJP has accused the Congress of promoting a communal divide to garner votes in the five states, including Punjab, where the elections process has been set into motion.
The Punjab Congress has come up with a manifesto which focuses on corruption-free governance, fiscal responsibility, welfare of marginalised sections and reforms in the education and health sectors. PCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh has promised the creation of an effective Lokayukta and a statutory vigilance commission. 
Hundreds of students were left stranded in Rajpura as the organisers of the Rajpura Marathon, against female
foeticide, called off the event just minutes before the scheduled time. Even the organisers didn't bother to inform the students that marathon has been cancelled. In spite of the cold conditions in the region, the participating students waited for the marathon to start.
The party will, however, have actors Nagma and Raj Babbar campaigning for it. Nagma, top heroine of Bhojpuri movies, has been roped in to campaign for the party in Ludhiana.
Despite the fact that sitting BJP MLA Jagdish Sahni pulled out all stops to ensure that the saffron party retained control of the seat, the SAD has fielded its nominee LS Lodhinangal from here.
After the delimitation process, Dhariwal assembly segment, represented by Agriculture Minister Sucha Singh Langah, has been dissolved and in its place a new constituency, Dera Baba Nanak, has been carved out.
Chandigarh, January 15
Having already made a hat-trick of her victory, Akali candidate and Finance Minister Upinderjit Kaur is looking for another win from Sultanpur Lodhi. She is, however, facing a tough contest from young Congress candidate Navtej Singh Cheema (former minister Gurmel Singh’s son. Dr Upinderjit Kaur’s old confidant and former MC chief Jaimal Singh is also in the fray on PPP ticket. He may eat into Dr Upinderjit Kaur’s vote bank.
Fatehgarh Churian Vidhan Sabha seat is the home turf of Punjab Speaker Nirmal Singh Kahlon and his son Ravi Kiran Kahlon, chairman of the Punjab Tubewell Corporation, has been nurturing the constituency for the last five years.
