Punjab Diary: Transfer 'threat' to PSPCL staffer

Amritsar: Even as Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has asked his MLAs to keep their family members and relatives away from meddling in the government affairs, a recording of a person claiming to be a brother of AAP MLA has surfaced. A person named Davinder can allegedly be heard threatening a woman staffer working at Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) with transfer. Davinder was reportedly annoyed because the employee did not answer his calls.

From chopper to e-ride

Ludhiana: Politicians generally fly in helicopters and planes to reach their destination. It is a quick, easy, and hassle-free way to travel. Recently, national president of Bharatiya Janata Party JP Nadda visited Ludhiana and reached the city on a helicopter. He was also to visit Mohalla Naughara where ancestral house of Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar is located. After his swanky helicopter ride, he was taken to Naughara in an e-rickshaw. Though it was not as luxurious as helicopter, but it was the easiest and quickest way to reach the old city area of Ludhiana.

Flaunting luxury car

Ludhiana: Recently, a video of AAP MLA Gurpreet Gogi went viral in which he can be seen going to the MC office in a Porsche. The video was watched by over 6 lakh people within three hours. When asked about the luxurious cars, the MLA replied that he had around 10 such cars and had all the details related to his source of income. “I can provide documentation of everything, thus I don’t have to be scared of anything. If I have these luxury cars, there is no harm in flaunting them,” he said.

Slanging match

Gurdaspur: Not long ago, former Cabinet minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and ex-MP Sunil Jakhar were the best of pals. So much so, when Jakhar contested the 2017 byelections from Gurdaspur constituency, Randhawa managed a massive 40,000 lead for him from his Assembly segment of Dera Baba Nanak. Later, when Jakhar was pitted against Sunny Deol, Randhawa again got him a lead of 20,000 odd votes. On his part, Jakhar played a pivotal role in elevating the status of Randhawa from an MLA to a Cabinet-rank minister. Somewhere along the way, the two fell out with each other. Known for keeping his composure even when the heat is on him, Jakhar keeps his calm and barely replies to his rival’s verbal volleys. On their part, locals are watching the slanging match with avid interest.

Calm prevails

Gurdaspur: When Cabinet Minister Vijay Singla was arrested for bribery charges, the message that went out was loud and clear. That CM Bhagwant Mann had zero-tolerance for corruption. Sources say officials are still flummoxed at the sudden turn of events. As for now many have suspended their ‘activities’ till calm sets in. “If you look at great civilisations from Roman Empire to the Soviet Union, you can see most did not fall because of any external threats but because of corruption or a failure to manifest the values and ideals they espoused,” said a senior bureaucrat. That is really well said.