Tarn Taran Diary: Bibi Paramjit Kaur Khalra not to contest Lok Sabha election

Bibi Paramjit Kaur Khalra, wife of the slain human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, is not going to contest the Lok Sabha elections this time. She contested the election from Khadoor Sahib (which was once Tarn Taran) seat in the 2019 General Election and got notably 2,14,489 (20.46%) votes as against 4,59,710 (43.86%) and 3,19,317 (30.45%) votes secured by Jasbir Singh Dimpa of the Congress and Jagir Kaur of SAD. She was the candidate of the Congress party MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira-led Punjab Ekta Party which became inactive soon after the elections. Without any mass following and grass-root set-up, getting 20.46% votes is not any easy task. Most votes polled by Bibi Khalra were of the SAD and it directly affected Bibi Jagir Kaur of the SAD then. Jaswant Singh Khaira was once active as a hardcore leftist and had worked with labourers in the border belt to resolve their problems. Jaswant Singh Khalra was killed in Tarn Taran in October 1996 after his abduction on September 6,1996, by the Tarn Taran district police from his Amritsar residence. Jaswant Singh Khalra had raised the killing of 25,000 Sikh youths during the period of militancy by calling them unidentified. The bodies of these youths were cremated by declaring them as unclaimed. He raised the issue at the international level. After the death of her husband, Bibi Khalra contested the Lok Sabha election in 1999 as the Jathedar Gurcharan Singh Tohra-led (then SGPC president) Sarab Hind Shiromani Akali Dal could get a mere 37,985 votes as against 3,05,899 votes polled in favour of Tarlochan Singh Tur, SAD candidate who was declared elected. Bibi Khalra is the chairperson of Khalra Mission Committee (KMO). The KMO has been raising issues related to violation of human rights for years. Harmandeep Singh Sarhali, president, KMO, said that Bibi Paramjit Kaur was not going to contest elections this time. “To contest elections is beyond our approach,” said Harmandeep Singh. He said this has been decided unanimously in a meeting of the KMO. The decision of Bibi Khalra is being considered a great relief for SAD in these elections. The KMO has sympathisers in the area who are committed and dedicated towards their aim, which is to fight against human rights violation.

Role of drugs, illicit liquor to be checked

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has issued strict instructions to check the role of money, muscle power and drugs, particularly illicit liquor, in Lok Sabha elections. The border district of Tarn Taran is considered to be a hotbed for distillation of illicit liquor as there was a Mand area alongside the river Beas, Sutlej and the border belt. The illicit liquor distilled in the district is supplied to different parts of the state and even neighbouring states too. To nab the accused busy in distillation of illicit liquor in the Mand area is not an easy task for the police and the excise department as those involved escape easily when they find the raiding party heading towards them from a far off distance. There was elephant grass in the Mand area to hide and boats were there to escape freely to the other side. Some women too were busy in the trade which was serious as they were involved in ‘marketing’ of illicit liquor. Deputy Commissioner-cum-District Election Officer Sandeep Kumar, in a meeting of the police and the excise department, issued strict instructions to check the menace. He said that the distillation of illicit liquor must be stopped and the activities of these elements observed closely. (Contributed by Gurbaxpuri)

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#human rights #Jaswant Singh Khalra #Khadoor Sahib #Lok Sabha #Tarn Taran