|
|
|
|
|
Another bid to ‘scuttle’ Rahul’s rally
Stars descend on Amritsar for Jaitley
BLASPHEMOUS SPEECH |
|
|
Ignored by leaders, farmers indifferent to elections this time
Ministers spent Rs 27.8 cr on road travel in 19 months
‘Free’ petrol for bikers in SAD rally stirs
up controversy
For CLP Leader, father Balram Jakhar is the star campaigner
from the war room
Dera Sacha Sauda may not support any party
Soni spent Rs 51 lakh on campaign
Amritsar seat may have over 60,000 bogus votes: Yadav
AAP complains against Cong
Manpreet fears coercion inside booths
Ex-Deputy Speaker Darbari Lal joins BJP
Sukhbir calls Jaitley future Union Finance Minister
Its land on sale once, Bathinda village awaits serving,
ex-CMs
Autopsy report inconclusive
Divest CM of Panth Rattan title, Akal Takht urged
Youth Brigade:
GNDU
Seepage from sullage drain damaging crops: Farmers
Punjab-Rajasthan border to be sealed till end of polling
Dal Khalsa to boycott poll
Shootout outside US gurdwara
Post-poll code, 586 POs held
Two killed in road accidents
|
Another bid to ‘scuttle’ Rahul’s rally
Bathinda, April 27 The party workers are now reportedly finding it hard to arrange buses to ferry supporters for the rally tomorrow. Rahul is slated to hold the rally in support of Congress-PPP-CPI candidate Manpreet Badal, who is locked in a keen contest with his estranged sister-in-law Harsimrat Kaur Badal, wife of SAD president and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal. The Congress workers had earlier alleged undue harassment in getting various clearances for the rally, including nod for water-tankers and getting the venue cleaned despite having deposited the fee. The tent house owner hired by the party also backed out after finalising the deal. After arranging another tent house from a far-off place outside Bathinda, now the vehicles are being hired at a much higher amount from neighboring Haryana, Rajasthan and other districts of Punjab. It is alleged that transporters in and around Bathinda got phone calls from a senior SAD worker whereby they were instructed not to provide their buses even if they were paid extra by the Congress. “We got the calls two hours after Narendra Modi’s rally on Friday,” said a city-based transporter. He said at least 200 to 300 buses would be required to ferry supporters. “While we have been told not to give our buses, a Barnala-based influential transporter (close to the SAD) is playing the middleman to arrange buses from Haryana. He will be pocketing Rs 500 to Rs 700 per vehicle as commission,” the transporter said. On the other hand, arranging buses for Modi’s rally was a cakewalk for the SAD-BJP workers. Nearly 200 buses were arranged from Bathinda, 100 from Ludhiana and around 75 each from Moga, Mansa, Muktsar, Kapurthala and other nearby districts, it has been learnt. “We could not dare to make any profit from Modi’s rally, though we had expected to do so from the Congress event,” said another transporter. Advocate Rajan Garg, Congress poll agent, alleged that the SAD-BJP alliance and the district administration had been leaving no stone unturned to scuttle the rally. “The administration, at the behest of the Akalis, delayed paper work and various permissions for the venue, water-tankers, cleanliness and other basic things,” said Rajan. SAD denies charge Denying the allegations that the SAD had passed instructions to transporters for not providing buses for Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s rally, Bathinda MLA and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Sarup Chand Singla said, “The Congress workers have been levelling such allegations only to put the onus of the rally’s failure on the SAD-BJP alliance. No such instructions have been issued.” Despite hurdles, Congress rally today
|
|
Stars descend on Amritsar for Jaitley
Amritsar, April 27 Jaitley's campaign has been a blend of glitz and glamour with Bollywood stars, cricketers, musicians and socialites descending on the poll scene. Shatrughan Sinha, BJP MP, Vivek Oberoi, Kirron Kher, Poonam Dhillon, Preeti Sapru and Suniel Shetty have campaigned for Jaitley. Eying the sizeable migrant population from UP and Bihar, the BJP also roped in Bhojpuri actor Manoj Tiwari. Cricketers Gautam Gambhir, Madan Lal and Chetan Chauhan also campaigned for Jaitley in the city. They targeted the youth, claiming that Jaitley would usher in a good era in sports, particularly cricket. Amritsar has been a cradle of noted sportspersons in the past. Most of these celebrities either held roadshows or went door-to-door to woo the voters. Noted santoor maestro Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, yoga guru Baba Ramdev, noted journalists Kuldeep Nayyar, Swapan Dasgupta and MJ Akbar also canvassed for Jaitley
in the city. The only notable name among non-political figures who has been campaigning for Amarinder is former India cricket team captain Bishen Singh Bedi. Amarinder targeted Jaitley, saying: “Either he has lost confidence or he has no faith in local workers of his party. Elections are not won by glamour but grassroots appeal. But then Jaitley is new to electoral politics.” Jaitley retorted in his blog today, saying: “The Captain complains that a lot of celebrities have come to campaign for me. He is right. I have a large number of family members, political friends and achievers campaigning for me. My political colleagues and leaders have also done their bit. Why has no senior Congress leader agreed to campaign for Captain? Is Anand Sharma the best he could get?”
|
|||||
|
BLASPHEMOUS SPEECH
Amritsar, April 27 Addressing a series of public meetings in the city, Amarinder said: “By giving a clean chit to Majithia, Badal is equally guilty of blasphemy. By explaining it as a mere slip of the tongue, the CM is not only protecting Majithia, but also giving a signal to the Sikh clergy. This is condemnable.” He said Badal had, perhaps, not understood the seriousness of the offence or was being bullied by Majithia. It was unbecoming of Badal to give a clean chit to Majithia, he argued. The former Chief Minister said the issue needed to be referred to the Sikh clergy comprising the five High Priests. He said that Sikhs across the globe were keeping a watch on the developments. He said Majithia should be punished to send out the signal that the influential too were accountable to the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs. Amarinder dubbed BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi as a “threat to Indian democracy and democratic values of secularism and inclusiveness”. To a query, he demanded a probe into Akali leader Sunny Johar’s mysterious death. “The police is trying to hush up the matter. I hope that justice will be done,” he said. Amarinder criticised former Chief of Army Staff General VK Singh for “distorting his statement on the 1965 war with Pakistan”. On General VK Singh’s remark on the delay in the ‘one rank, one pension’ scheme, Amarinder asked: “Why didn’t the BJP-led NDA Government do anything on the matter?”
Sikhs in Fatehgarh Sahib burnt Majithia’s effigy for distorting Gurbani. They said such acts of denigrating the Sikh Gurus would not be tolerated. The protesters, who assembled outside the historic gurdwara in the town, said that the minister had hurt their religious sentiments. They urged the Akal Takht Jathedar to declare him “tankhaiya” and ex-communicate him. They also demanded that Majithia be removed as Youth Akali Dal president.
‘Chief Minister is equally guilty’ It is unbecoming of the CM to give a clean chit to Majithia. Sikhs across the globe are watching the development. Majithia should be punished to send out a clear signal that the influential too are accountable to the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs. Capt Amarinder Singh,
Congress leader Jat Maha Sabha attacks Badal The All-India Jat Maha Sabha has held Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal responsible for the denial of the benefit of reservation under the OBC category to state Jats. Addressing a press conference here, secretary general Yudhvir Singh and vice-president Harpal Singh said: “Badal deliberately delayed the matter as he feared that the Congress would get the credit for it. For petty political interests, Badal has denied reservation benefits to the educated Sikh and Hindu Jats.”
|
|||||
|
Ignored by leaders, farmers indifferent to elections this time
Khanna/Rajpura, April 27 After all, they say, no political party has done much for them. With the farmers’ incomes not keeping pace with their rising expenditure — cost of diesel has shot up by more than 30 per cent in the past two years, cost of labour has increased substantially, and fertiliser prices are up by 30 per cent — the agrarian economy is on a downturn. In Khanna, the largest grain market in Asia, Ajaib Singh of Asgiripur village would rather talk about how his yield is lower than expected — its 18 quintal per acre — than dwell on the elections. “The weather has played a spoilsport this year and production has been adversely hit. Ithe taan saadi kamayi khatam ho gayi, kisnu vehal hai leaderan di gal sunan da. Waise bhi, ihna ne saade vaaste ki kar laina hai (Our income has fallen sharply. We do not have time to listen to politicians. After all, they will not do anything for us),” he says. Sources said that in Sangrur and Patiala districts, and parts of the Doaba region, where lodging (a scientific term for the damage to crops) has been reported, wheat yield has fallen by 3 to 4 quintal per acre. Charninder Singh of Bhua Khedi village near Patiala says that there is no sign of elections in rural areas as farmers are busy getting their produce to the mandis. “Ihna nu vi pata hai ki hun zamindar kol time nahi hai. Uh pehlan apna kamm karega ya ihna de jhoothe vaade sunega (The candidates know that farmers do not have time. Will a farmer finish his work first or listen to the false promises of the nominees),” he says. The state is expecting a production of 165 lakh tonnes of wheat. The average yield is 20. 5 quintal per acre, though in some areas it goes up to 24 quintal. This year, rain coupled with winds in March, led to lodging of the standing wheat crop in some parts of the state. But in several other areas, prolonged lower than normal temperature has led to larger than normal grain size. As a result, say agriculture experts from Ludhiana’s Punjab Agricultural University, the wheat production will not be hit. It is after 1982 that the state has witnessed such weather conditions and wheat arrival has been so delayed. One major reason for farmers’ disillusionment with the politicians is their inability to give them bonus over and above the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of crops. “The state governments of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh compensate farmers by giving a bonus of Rs 100 to Rs 150 per quintal. The last time Punjab farmers got a bonus was in 2006. This shows how concerned politicians are about our welfare,” says Santosh Singh of Mandiala Kalan village, as he sits in the Khanna grain market waiting for his produce to be sold. He adds that though politicians campaign in his village, their meetings are drawing a blank. “Farmers have no time for them,” he asserts. With more rhetoric and little action by almost all political parties to ameliorate their condition, farmers in Punjab are more concerned about getting on with their business than indulging in the business of politics.
|
|||||
|
Ministers spent Rs 27.8 cr on road travel in 19 months
Jalandhar, April 27 The information was sought for 2011-13 from the Department of Parliamentary Affairs, but the state Transport Commissioner furnished information between April 1, 2012 and October 31, 2013. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal tops the list with an expenditure to the tune of
Rs 8.22 crore. This amount comes to Rs 45.66 lakh a month, which figures close to the total road travel expenditure of other ministers in the same period. Deputy Chief Minister spent
Rs 5.9 crore, the second highest amount incurred in this regard. Transport Minister Ajit Singh Kohar ranks third with an expenditure of
Rs 59.9 lakh. BJP minister Surjit Kumar Jyani is next in line with Rs 58.18 lakh incurred on his road travel. Chief Minister’s son-in-law and Food and Civil Supplies Minister Adesh Partap Kairon is on the 15th number, just one up from Education Minister Sikander Singh Maluka. Kairon and Maluka’s travel expenses stand at
Rs 29.7 lakh and Rs 28.75 lakh, respectively. Sukhbir Badal’s brother-in-law Bikram Majithia spent
Rs 42.91 lakh from the exchequer for his tours in the state. RTI activist Sanjay Sehgal said he had sought the details pertaining to airfare expenses, medical allowances, daily allowances and constituency allowances from the Public Information Officer of the Department of Parliamentary Affairs, but information was given only on road transport expenses. “The Pungrain Director sent me the details of Kairon’s airtrips to New York and London, which cost
Rs 4.32 lakh,” he added.
|
|||||
‘Free’ petrol for bikers in SAD rally stirs
up controversy
Faridkot, April 27 It is alleged that hours before the beginning of a roadshow in support of Gulshan, some filling stations in Faridkot were asked to provide free fuel to the bikes, the cost of which was to be reimbursed by the Akali candidate. It is alleged that while the total fuel bill is estimated to be over Rs 4 lakh, there was no mention of this expenditure in the poll expenses of the Akali candidate. Congress leaders in the area have even collected the details of this fuel bill from some filling stations and asked the election commission observers to check their record. Manish Saxena, poll observer in Faridkot, said they would re-check the Candidate Shadow Observation Register record for reconciliation. "Any such petrol bill is not in my knowledge so far," he said. Kushaldeep Dhillon, general secretary, Punjab Congress, said there was ample evidence of hundreds of bikes getting free fuel from filling stations in the town, so these expenses should be included in the poll expenditure record. What makes it a double whammy for the Akali candidate is that apart from the trouble that she can get into, a large number of the bikers who were provided “free-of-cost” fuel did not turn up for the roadshow, making it less impressive than expected. Double whammy for Gulshan Apart from the EC wrath that Akali candidate from Faridkot Paramjit Kaur Gulshan can incur, it proved to be a double whammy for her as a large number of bikers who were provided ‘free-of-cost fuel’ did not turn up for the roadshow, making it less impressive than expected.
|
|||||
|
For CLP Leader, father Balram Jakhar is the star campaigner
Abohar, April 27 Born in 1923, the "Wadda Chaudhary", as he is called by his followers, has the distinction of beginning his career in Parliament by occupying the office of the Speaker immediately after his election to the Seventh Lok Sabha for the first time in 1980 with a record margin of over 1.76 lakh votes. He also has the rare honour of having been chosen unanimously. While veterans, including AICC president Sonia Gandhi and Bollywood superstars, had been visiting Abohar to address rallies in the past elections, this time only Balram Jakhar addressed rallies at Khuyiansarwer village and Abohar last night. A relaxed, confident Jakhar senior spent his Sunday visiting old friends' families. To give further boost to Sunil Jakhar's campaign in the final phase, Rajasthan congress leaders Santosh Saharan and Jagdish Jandu, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda's Officer on Special Duty KV Singh and minister Prahlad Kumar Gillakhera shared the dais with Bal Ram Jakhar.
Taking a dig on BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, senior Jakhar said the Gujarat Chief Minister had claimed that Ganga had “called” him to Varanasi, but it did not deem fit to him to have a holy bath, fearing it might “clean his mind on secularism”. Referring to The Tribune series on exceptional rise in empires of the ruling Badals, Jakhar said the SAD top brass should have concentrated more on redressing grievances of the common man, who was the worst sufferer during the alliance government’s “misrule”. "We made the region a hub of kinnow fruit and got sanctioned fruit juice plants from the Central government but the state government shut them down to promote liquor and drugs. You can find licensed and unlicensed liquor outlets on each road and residential colony now,” he said.
|
|||||
|
from the war room
Gurdaspur, April 27 Besides, Bajwa, who beat former Union minister Vinod Khanna by 8,300 votes in the 2009 elections, has the support of Capt Vikram Singh, who was Internal Security Adviser to former Prime Minister Chandrasekhar. Capt Vikram has been camping in Pathankot and Gurdaspur cities. He has been roped in by the sitting MP to take care of about two lakh Rajput votes, primarily scattered over the Assembly seats of Bhoa, Pathankot, Sujanpur and Dinanagar. Apart from these seats, Rajputs also command a strong presence in the Kahnuwan and Gurdaspur blocks of this constituency. Bajwa’s core team comprises his younger brother, a journalist, an NRI and a former government employee, who left his job to assist Bajwa. His younger brother Fatehjung Bajwa has his own share of political experience after having contested three Assembly elections, albeit unsuccessfully. He was also in the fray for the ticket from Gurdaspur this time. Journalist Pankaj Khanna devises Partap’s media strategy, networks with journalists of mainline and vernacular newspapers and stays connected to the communication department of the AICC. NRI Bobby Sidhu has come from Toronto, where he presides over a legal firm. He is known as Bajwa’s “Man Friday” and is known for his organisational skills. Gurpartap Singh Maan is a former government employee who looks after key administrative jobs, including liaisoning with the PPCC office in Chandigarh. He has made the Congress Bhawan in Gurdaspur his base and oversees the social media campaign of Bajwa, including his Facebook page. His core team
|
|||||
|
Dera Sacha Sauda may not support any party
Muktsar, April 27 The Dera’s political affairs wing has reportedly been getting response from their block and district-level committees against supporting any particular candidate or party anywhere in the state. Speaking to The Tribune over the phone, Ram Singh, dera’s political affairs wing head, said, “We have conducted more than 100 meetings so far. The 113 block-level and all district-level committees were told to give their suggestions, but hardly any of them has shown interest in supporting any particular candidate or party.” He said though the final decision would be announced in a day or two, it seemed not to be going in favour of any particular party. The dera has followers from all religions, who have their affiliation with various political parties. Ram Singh claimed the dera chief, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, played no role in political activities, and that the matter was left to the seven-member committee of the political affairs wing. The dera chief currently was in Delhi for a religious congregation of Kurukshetra district’s followers at Ramlila Ground. The dera chief had earlier announced that he had left it to his followers to vote whomever they wanted to. Another member of the political affairs wing, Raj Singh, however, said, “The decision has not come yet… but the followers may be told to cast vote for candidates with a clean image.” He said in the assembly elections too, the dera had not supported any single party. Sources said the decision would come on April 29, a day before the polling. The political wing members feigned ignorance when asked whether any Punjab bigwig had come to seek the dera chief’s blessings over the last few days.
|
|||||
|
Soni spent Rs 51 lakh on campaign
Ropar, April 27 The Election Commission (EC) has fixed the limit for expenses at Rs 70 lakh for each candidate. The campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections in the state ends tomorrow evening. Soni, who has submitted the record of her expenditure on the election campaign, is far ahead of her main rival and SAD candidate Prem Singh Chandumajra, who has so far spent Rs 42.76 lakh. The only other candidate who has spent more than Rs 10 lakh on the campaign during the same period is Punjabi singer KS Makhan, who is contesting on the BSP ticket. He has submitted the bills for Rs 15.11 lakh. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate, Himmat Singh Shergill, has spent Rs 7.19 lakh, while CPM’s Balbir Singh Rs 5.31 lakh. Among the Independent candidates, Fakir Chand Kariha has spent the most so far. His expenditure stands at Rs 1.64 lakh. Mandeep Singh has spent the minimum at Rs 18,000.
|
|||||
|
Amritsar seat may have over 60,000 bogus votes: Yadav
Amritsar, April 27 He claimed that AAP had verified some polling booths in Rajasansi segment and its Booth No. 178 had 163 bogus votes. He said they had sent a complaint to the District Returning Officer to immediately verify the “fake votes” and order their cancellation. He said this aroused great suspicion that large number of bogus votes may be polled to influence the final tally. He said going by this sample of “bogus votes” in Amritsar, there could be more than 60,000 such votes in the constituency. Expressing anger over the large-scale prevalence of drugs among youth in the state, he accused the Akali leaders of patronising the drug trade. He targeted Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia yet again over the issue. He said the people would give a befitting response to the SAD-BJP combine and punish them for their misdeeds. He expected great results for the AAP in Punjab as he said he had sensed wave in their favour in triangular contests. He said they were hoping for a “very favourable result”, which would shock all political calculations in Punjab and may fail the poll pundits. Yadav urged the Election Commission to be extra vigilant and also asked AAP workers to be extra cautious to ensure that no bogus votes were polled and “not allow any kind to intimidation by the ruling alliance, which may resort to money and muscle power to woo voters in their favour”.
AAP complains against Cong
Patiala: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has filed a complaint with state Electoral Officer Chaitanya Sharma against Patiala Congress candidate Preneet Kaur for allegedly appealing to the electorate to not vote for AAP. The sitting MP allegedly stated in pamphlets that voting for any party other than the Congress would protect the interests of the SAD-BJP Government. The AAP has demanded strict action against the Congress "for harming the process of a free and a fair election".
|
|||||
|
Manpreet fears coercion inside booths
Bathinda, April 27 In his representation, Manpreet has said that the SAD has fielded 24 Independent candidates and that the SAD was setting up their polling agents. Consequently, 24 persons owing allegiance to the SAD candidate would be present inside every polling booth, Manpreet alleged, seeking extra vigilance at the polling booths. He also alleged that postal ballots of policemen on election duty had been collected by their top officers to ensure they voted in favour of the SAD. Additional District Election Officer Sonali Giri said she was not aware of
any complaint.
|
|||||
|
Ex-Deputy Speaker Darbari Lal joins BJP
Amritsar, April 27 Addressing a press conference in the evening, Prof Darbari Lal said: “I joined the Congress during the times of Jawaharlal Nehru. But it is no more the same party. In the last Assembly elections, the party ticket was sold for Rs 2 crore each and I could not afford it.” He said he had quit the Congress as the “nation today needs a strong government at the Centre and it is becoming increasingly clear that led by the BJP, Narendra Modi will form the next government. He said Jaitley was a promising leader who would take Amritsar on the path of development. More Congress workers “who are feeling suffocated”, would also support Jaitley, he claimed. He said if Amarinder won, he would merely be an MP, but Jaitley’s win would ensure that “we have a person at the Centre who can contribute to Amritsar’s progress.” He said he had not joined the BJP for any benefit. He recalled his old ties with Jaitley’s in-laws. Jaitley described Prof Darbari Lal as an honest leader. Prof Darbari Lal has been a three-time legislator from the Amritsar Central constituency. The develpoment may hit the Congress.
Won't make any difference: Capt Congress candidate Amarinder Singh dismissed the development, saying it would make no difference to his poll prospects. "It is all part of politics," he said, claiming Prof Darbari Lal (in pic) had attended a public meeting with him on Sunday. He wondered why the latter had so far kept mum on the alleged sale of the Congress ticket.— TNS
|
|||||
|
Sukhbir calls Jaitley future Union Finance Minister
Fazilka, April 27 “The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is all set to wrest power at the Centre and Arun Jaitley would be elevated as Finance Minister of the country. A huge amount would flow to Punjab for development projects,” claimed the junior Badal. The statement came despite the fact that Jaitley had at that time clarified that he was not looking for any position. While wooing voters of the border area, he disclosed that the whole of the border belt from Amritsar to Fazilka would be declared as “special economic zone”, under which tax holidays would be offered to industrialists and others on the pattern of mountainous states to boost the economy. Sukhbir was in his constituency, Jalalabad, to address an SAD-BJP workers’ meeting this evening. He tendered an apology to people for being unable to pay frequent visits during the election season, saying he was busy in other areas to discharge the responsibility of SAD president and Deputy Chief Minister. He claimed that the SAD-BJP combine would win all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab and they are focusing on defeating Congress stalwarts such as Ambika Soni, Captain Amarinder Singh and Sunil Jakhar in particular.
|
|||||
|
Campaigning ends today evening Open petrol sale fuels violence fear FIR against SAD(A) candidate 76 booked for not depositing weapons Sachit Pilot campaigns for Soni
|
|
Its land on sale once, Bathinda village awaits serving, ex-CMs
Harkishanpura (Bathinda), April 27 Almost all land in the village is attached with one bank or the other, says ex-sarpanch Jagsir Singh, “We can neither sell it nor mortgage it for new loans. Besides, there is debt of the ‘ahrtiyas’ (commission agents). The American worm ate into the cotton crop and we had bad crop in the 1990s. That mounted debt on us,” he says. This election, the villagers want to meet Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and two former Chief Ministers — Capt Amarinder Singh and Rajinder Kaur Bhattal. They want to remind them of unkempt promises. Badal had promised a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the families of suicide victims. Bhattal had promised a modern dispensary, while Capt Amarinder had promised to waive their debts. The villagers are clear in demanding three things — waiving all debts, upgrading the village to Class XII and availability of a doctor round the clock. Children have to travel a long distance to attain education and a doctor is available 20 km away in Rampura Phul. But the first demand is of utmost importance, insists Paras Singh. “If the government can’t write off all my debt, at least waive the interest. I had taken Rs 1.5 lakh loan in 1990s. I have paid Rs 3 lakh and Rs 7 lakh is still pending. I have no means to repay,” he said speaking for nearly 80 debt-ridden families who own land. There are nearly 150 families in the village with 70 being landless agricultural labourers. The residents vouch for the SAD more than any other party. It is mainly because of no strict action against the debt-ridden farmers in the past several years. But this does not mean that the Akalis can be rest assured of the 670-odd voters of the village. “Badal Saheb and Harsimrat bibaji have done a lot for us. They brought canal water. We don’t have to pay power bills. Electricity supply is better. Purified water is available for drinking. But had they written off our debts, they would not even need to campaign in the village,” said Bholla Singh, another debt-ridden farmer. Two residents from nearby Nandgarh village caution them for talking to the media, “The media brought a bad name to the village. They first told you to put up notice boards, declaring that the village was on sale and then they went to the town about it. As a result, you faced difficulty in marrying off your sons and daughters.” The ex-sarpanch Jagsir counters them. He recalls how four families of the village recently spent around Rs 1 crore on the wedding of their children, “The loan stays, but we are financially better off than earlier.” At the village bus stop, an aged Tej Kaur rages with anger when asked who would she vote. “I don’t want to vote for anyone. They have not given us even monthly pension. My granddaughter has to travel far to study. What has the government done for us?”
Issues that matter
|
||
|
Autopsy report inconclusive
Ludhiana, April 27 “There is more than meets the eye.The autopsy report is inconclusive. Something is fishy. Even the family is not saying anything on the issue,” he said. Kamalpreet Kaur, wife of the deceased, told the police that her husband had died a natural death. Preliminary medical examination today could not shed much light on the cause of the death. The victim’s viscera has been sent to the special laboratory in Kharar and the lungs and heart to Rajindra Hospital, Patiala. Sunny Johar, 45, senior vice-president of the YAD, fell out of favour after he assaulted SS Mand, Assistant IG, and his NRI friend at a Christmas party in December 24, 2012.
About deceased Akali leader
No link with death: Majithia
Amritsar:
Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia said on Sunday that he was “extremely sad” at the demise of former SAD leader from Ludhiana, Maninder Pal Singh Sunny. Offering condolences to Sunny’s family, he said: “I may be constrained to take legal action against anyone who links me with the incident .” Majithia sought an independent and fair probe into the death.
Ludhiana: A statement released by Kamalpreet Kaur, wife of the deceased Akali leader read:
“My husband went off to sleep on the intervening night of April 25 and 26. At about 4 am, he got up and went to the washroom. He felt a little uneasy. At about 7.30 am, when I tried to wake him up, he did not respond. Worried, I called my son Karanjot, who called my elder brother-in-law Balwinder Singh, residing on the first floor. “We rushed him to Ragunath Hospital. We reached there after 8 am. The doctors tried to resuscitate him. They put him on the ventilator and declared him dead at about 8.45 am. “My husband passed away owing to a cardiac arrest. He had high blood pressure. He suffered from no other disease and was under no stress. “We consented to a post-mortem to avoid a controversy. There has been speculation that he may have committed suicide. There is not an iota of truth in it. He was a courageous and God-fearing person. He held onto himself and was there for his family in the most adverse situations. The thought of suicide could have never crossed his mind. “He was a born fighter and a very responsible husband and father. There is no suicide note.” Balwinder Singh’s letter
to Ravneet Bittu
“You are aware that my brother never approached you (to join the Congress). You are also aware that he never wished to join your party. On the contrary,
he disliked the ideologies of your party…. “I urge you to either disown or withdraw your incorrect statement, otherwise I shall be left with no option but to approach the Election Commission and the court of law.” When contacted, Congress candidate insisted on a thorough probe. — TNS
|
||
|
Divest CM of Panth Rattan title, Akal Takht urged
Chandigarh, April 27 They said the decision of the Akal Takht Jathedar, Giani Gurbachan Singh, to honour Badal with the title was taken in haste. “Since Badal has not done nothing much for the Sikh community and his acts have led to the degeneration of the highest Sikh traditions,” the Akal Takht should take the title back from him immediately, the radicals demanded. The Punjab Human Rights Organisation, Lawyers for Human Rights International, Akhand Kirtani Jatha, SAD (Panch Pardhani), Dal Khalsa Guru Aasra Trust and Guru Granth Da Khalsa Panth represented by Justice Ajit Singh Bains, Amar Singh Chahal, Tejinder Singh Sudan, Gurdarshan Singh Dhillon, Rajinder Pal Singh, Kulbir Kaur, Harpal Singh Cheema, Kamikkar Singh, Satnam Singh Paonta Sahib and Manjit Singh have
sent a letter to the Akal Takht Jathedar in this regard. “We have been seeking time from the Jathedar, so that a discussion can be held on this serious issue, but in vain. Now we have sent a registered letter to the Akal Takht Jathedar seeking revocation of the title conferred on Parkash Singh Badal... “Napolean had declared himself an emperor, but the Pope had refused to accept this, upholding the highest religious traditions,” said Dhillon, claiming that the letter to the Akal Takht chief had nothing to do with the coming elections. “Punjab has witnessed a spurt in the drug trade, land grab incidents and smuggling of narcotics during the 10-year Badal misrule. Instead of accepting such titles, he should own moral responsibility for the degeneration witnessed on all fronts and quit. “Badal blames the Centre for the narco-terrorism unleashed in the state. Can Badal answer why 65 per cent of inmates lodged in state-controlled jails have become addicts? “The BSF only controls the 550-km-long international border on the Punjab frontier. Why has a state with the highest concentration of police personnel failed to act against those indulging in the drug trade,” asked Justice Bains. The leaders blamed Badal for the “proliferation” of
deras.
|
||
|
Youth Brigade:
GNDU
Amritsar, April 27 Hargobind Singh, an MCA student at Guru Nanak Dev University, says that cine stars or a publicity blitzkrieg cannot create a wave in favour of a candidate. For most of the 35,000 first-timers in Amritsar, the ink mark on their finger has the potential to transform the political system, which they describe as “sick”. Hargobind’s friend Neha, an MA (Punjabi) student, says students can’t be swayed by mere political gimmickry, such as buying a house in the city. Nor are they “At BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s rally here, the saffron party’s prime agenda was to brag over bringing the PM’s brother into the party fold. They should discard the tu-tu, mein mein politics,” she says. Karan, Deepak and Nitish, all MBA students, are concerned about the youth taking to drugs. “As per the official data, 70 per cent of the youth in Punjab are drug addicts. Drug use is rampant among the unemployed in this border district. We need more industrial units to create more employment opportunities,” they maintain. Kanika and Apoorva, BTech-II (electronics) students, are pinning their hopes on the Aam AAdmi Party (AAP). “Everyone knows about the politician-drug peddler nexus. We see a ray of hope in AAP. The party, although young, has led an anti-corruption tirade and promises to bust the drug mafia in the state,” they say. Shubhneek, a BA (Honours) student, and Vishal, an MBA student, say there is a need to transform people’s mindset so that
people stop voting on caste lines. Ranjit Kaur, a BSc (Part-I) student, says politicians do not invest enough to upgrade educational facilities in rural areas. “Thus handicapped, often the villagers cannot gauge what is best for them,” she says. Amrit Pal, a student of architecture, says he would surf about the candidates’ antecedents and achievements on the internet before deciding whom to vote for. Another MBA student, Jatinder Singh, says he may press the NOTA (none of the above) button. “This may stop political parties from fielding corrupt candidates,” he says. On their priority list
Youthspeak Cine stars or a publicity blitzkrieg cannot create a wave in favour of a candidate. Hargobind Singh, mca student There is a need to transform people’s mindset so that they do not vote on caste lines. Shubhneek, ba (honours) We need more industrial units to create employment opportunities in border areas. Karan, mba student I may press the NOTA button to stop parties from fielding corrupt candidates. Jatinder Singh, mba student We see a ray of hope in AAP. We back its stand on various issues such as corruption. Kanika, btech-II I will surf the internet to find out the candidates’ antecedents and then decide whom to vote for. Amrit Pal, architecture student
|
||
|
Seepage from sullage drain damaging crops: Farmers
Fazilka, April 27 The 10-km-long sullage carrier originates from Fazilka town and ends at Kabulshah Hithar village near the international border in Fazilka district. Only about 4-km of its stretch has been brick-lined and the rest is still “kutcha”, which causes considerable seepage in the surrounding areas. The “kutcha” portion is also popularly known as the old Fazilka drain. “About 500 to 600 acres of agricultural land of half a dozen villages, including Noor Mohammad, Chhota and Bara Mumbeki, Qadr Baksh, Kabulshah, Thangni and Beriwala, has been affected with the seepage water,” said Roshan Lal Bharti, Nambardar of Kadr Baksh village. He said, "Due to seepage, about 200-feet-deep sub-soil water had been contaminated. As a result, deep-bore tubewell water is proving to be unfit for irrigation of wheat and paddy crops, which are the major cash crops cultivated in this area." Another villager, Sham Lal, alleged that due to the kutcha sullage carrier, the water overflows its banks and often enters farmers’ fields. It plays havoc with the standing crops. Moreover, foul smell emanating from the sullage water poses inconvenience for villagers. Since no RO system has been installed in Kadar Baksh village, villagers are compelled to consume unhealthy drinking water. “No proper cleanliness of the carrier is carried out. The bridges on the old Fazilka drain are also in a shambles,” alleged a villager. About 200 affected villagers, in a memorandum submitted to the authorities concerned, including the Deputy Commissioner and Municipal Council officers, on October 20, 2011, had demanded redressal of the problem. When questioned about the maintenance of the sullage carrier, officials of the Municipal Council, Drainage Department and the Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board passed the buck on each other.
|
||
|
Punjab-Rajasthan border to be sealed till end of polling
Fazilka, April 27 The officers decided to plug sensitive points from where miscreants can infiltrate in this border district to disturb the election process. Inspector General of Police, Bathinda Zone, PS
Umranangal; Divisional Commissioner, Ferozepur Division, VK Sharma; Deputy Commissioner,
Fazilka, S Karuna Raju; General Observer KC Chauhan; Expenditure Observer Vinish
Chaudhary; Deputy Commissioner, Muktsar, Parmjit Singh; Senior Superintendent of Police,
Fazilka, Nilambari Vijay Jagdale; Deputy Commissioner, Hanumangarh (Rajasthan), PU
Kishan; Senior Superintendent of Police, Srigangangar (Rajasthan); Manoj Kumar;
IG, Bikaner Division (Rajasthan), Nathu Ram; participated in the meeting. Commissioner VK Sharma said the inter-state border with Rajasthan would be sealed from April 28 till the completion of polling on April 30 and every
vehicle entering Punjab territory would be searched thoroughly. He said 24 sensitive points had been identified where additional force would be deployed on the Punjab-Rajasthan border. He said a special barrier would be laid on the Punjab-Haryana inter-state border near Kandukhera village in Muktsar district to prevent infiltration of miscreants.
Security beefed up
|
||
|
Dal Khalsa to boycott poll
Hoshiarpur, April 27 Dal Khalsa spokesperson Kanwar Pal Singh said there is a NOTA button to reject all candidates in a constituency, but their call for boycott was a collective rejection of the electoral system. He was talking to mediapersons at a seminar on analysing gains and losses of Sikhs participating in the elections since 1952. — TNS
|
||
Shootout outside US gurdwara
Sacramento, April 27 The police arrested a Whatcom County man after a fight broke out and at least one shot was fired outside the gurdwara. Witnesses reported that several men started fighting in front of the Guru Nanak Gursikh Gurdwara. Balwinder Singh Nagra (41) from the Bellingham area allegedly grabbed a gun from his vehicle and shot at several men. Nagra was arrested and lodged in Whatcom County Jail on the suspicion of drive by shooting and unlawful possession of a firearm. Under the state law, the term “drive-by shooting” includes shootings from the immediate area of a vehicle used to transport the suspect, the weapon or both. There were no known injuries, but the other men involved in the fight left the area. A bullet went through both the passenger and driver’s side windows of a parked white Toyota Camry in a field, about 150 yards from the event, before striking another parked car. More than 1,000 visitors gathered at the gurdwara for the parade.
|
|
Post-poll code, 586 POs held
Jalandhar, April 27 The Director General of Police also asked the district police heads to arrest maximum POs, with special attention to fugitives involved in heinous crimes. As per the state Election Commission’s website, 18,323 POs are on the run in the state. After the election code was enforced, the police scanned the list of POs at large to identify criminals involved in serious crimes. Compared with other districts, the Jalandhar Commissionerate has the maximum of 3,015 criminals, who are on the run, followed by Ludhiana (2,489), Amritsar city (1,547), Jalandhar rural (1,373) and Hoshiarpur (1,262). As per the official records, after the enforcement of the model code of conduct, the Ludhiana city police arrested 84 POs, followed by 71 by the Jalandhar rural police, 64 by the Amritsar city police and 58 by the Jalandhar city police. Kapurthala and Hoshiarpur police failed to nab a single PO in spite of 711 and 1,262 criminals, respectively, at large in the police records. Police districts such as Mansa, Sangrur, Amritsar rural, Pathankot, Barnala, Mohali, Amritsar rural, Muktsar and Ropar couldn’t perform well as the count of arrested POs was below 10. Some of them have been on the run for the past three decades. Among them are Asti of Mohalla Chadian and Kuldip of Dhade village. They were booked for murder in 1983 and 1987, respectively. Satinderjit Singh alias Mintu dodged the police for more than 25 years. Wanted in the murder of Akali leader Surinder Singh Makkar, brother of former SAD legislator Sarabjit Makkar, he was nabbed by the Batala police in November last year. Dinkar Gupta, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Law and Order, said he had asked the district police heads to launch a special campaign to put maximum POs behind the bars with special attention on criminals wanted in heinous crimes. The Punjab Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), VK Singh, said he was getting daily law and order reports from the Punjab
DGP.
|
|
|
Hoshiarpur, April 27 In another accident, Nasib Kaur was killed when the bike she was riding on with her son-in-law was hit by a car on the Jalandhar road near Singriwala bypass. — TNS
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Former CM and Congress candidate Capt Amarinder Singh today lashed out at CM Parkash Singh Badal for “shielding Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia and giving him a clean chit” in a case of blasphemy.
Politics and politicians do not matter to them, as its business as usual for farmers in Punjab.
Not affected by the political heat generated by the campaign of more than 250 candidates in the fray for the Lok Sabha elections, farmers are more concerned about the low yield of wheat, poor arrangements in mandis, and how to immediately start harvesting wheat “bhusa” or “tuddi” in local parlance.
Gurdaspur, April 27
Paras Singh, aged about 50, received another notice of ‘kurki’ (auction) of his 5 acres in Harkishanpura village of Bathinda district a few days ago. His reaction was the same as it has been for almost a decade — dump the piece of paper.
Human rights organisations and Sikh radicals have approached the Akal Takht Jathedar, seeking that “Panth Rattan Fakhr-e-Quam” conferred on CM Parkash Singh Badal be taken back for his “anti-Panthic” activities and the “widespread drug addiction and violation of human rights”
in the state.
Shunning religion and caste-based politics, the agenda of GenNext is quality education, more job opportunities, better civic amenities, end to quota system and safe and healthy environment.
Not affected by the political heat generated by the campaign of more than 250 candidates in the fray for the Lok Sabha elections, farmers are more concerned about the low yield of wheat, poor arrangements in mandis, and how to immediately start harvesting wheat “bhusa” or “tuddi” in local parlance.
The Cabinet ministers of Punjab spent a whopping amount of Rs 27.8 crore from the state exchequer on road transport in just 19 months. The information was revealed in a reply to an RTI application filed by a Congress leader here.
Veteran parliamentarian and former Madhya Pradesh Governor Balram Jakhar has emerged as a star campaigner for his son and CLP Leader Sunil Jakhar, who is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Ferozepur constituency.
Fatehjung Bajwa
Pankaj Khanna
Bobby Sidhu
GS Mann
Congress candidate from the Anandpur Sahib constituency Ambika Soni has spent more than Rs 51 lakh on her election campaign till April 25.
Senior AAP leader Yogendera Yadav has aired his apprehensions about large-scale rigging here as he said “anger against the SAD-BJP government was clearly palpable”. Addressing a press conference prior to a roadshow here today, Yadav said his party would appeal to the Election Commission to monitor the polling and declare every booth as sensitive, besides videographing the entire voting in Amritsar constituency.
Apprehending voters’ coercion inside polling booths, the Congress-PPP-CPI candidate from Bathinda, Manpreet Badal, has written to the Election Commission (EC).
Former Deputy Speaker Prof Darbai Lal today quit the Congress and joined the BJP. He was welcomed by BJP candidate Arun Jaitley and Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia.
A small-time trader, Sunny Johar rose to prominence after he came in contact with
Revenue Minister Majithia
This became possible as the state Election Commission strictly told the police to tighten noose around fugitives as they may become a threat to law and order during the elections.