Upset over not getting ticket, leaders to fight on their own

Bharat Khanna

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 18

A number of aspirants, who could not managed to get tickets of different political parties, have decided to fight the Assembly elections as independent candidates on the last day for filing nominations today.

Sukhraj Natt, previously a Congress leader and who has been in the race for ticket from Maur, is among the independent candidates.

He had earlier given an ultimatum to the Congress to withdraw its decision announcing Harmindar Singh Jassi as party candidate from Maur.

“I will contest as independent. The party should have given ticket to a person who hails from this place. Jassi is an outsider and looser, who will not get any Dera votes,” said Natt.

Another aspirant from Maur, Bhupinder Singh Gora, also filed his nominations as independent candidate. He too was in the Congress earlier.

After failing to get AAP ticket, Gurpreet Singh Mehraj from Rampura, a former kisan wing secretary with AAP, also announced to contest as independent candidate from the Rampura Phul constituency.

He has levelled serious allegations against AAP candidate Manjit Singh Bitti’s father, who was an alleged drug smuggler with a number of cases registered against him, though Manjit has refuted the allegations.

Gurpreet Singh Mehraj will fight against Gurpreet Singh Kangar of the Congress, Sikander Singh Maluka of SAD and the AAP candidate.

In Mansa, advocate Gurpreet Singh Vicky, a youth Congress leader, burnt a Congress flag and filed nominations as independent candidate after Manoj Bala, who is the wife of former Congress MLA from Budhlada, got the ticket.

Gurpreet Kaur Gagowal, who fought elections from the Mansa assembly segment on a Congress ticket, today filed her nominations as independent candidate. Gagowal is the daughter in-law of former Congress MLA late Sher Singh Gagowal.

Jagsir Singh, a ticket aspirant of AAP, has also decided to fight elections from Bathinda (Rural).

“I was the labour wing circle in charge but the party didn’t pay what was due to me. Rupinder Kaur Ruby is an outsider,” he said.