Tajinder Bittu replaced with 80-yr-old ex-MLA

Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service 

Jalandhar, January 13

Facing a dual revolt, the Congress today changed the candidature from the Jalandhar (North) seat, replacing former Jalandhar Improvement Trust chairman Tajinder Bittu with former MLA Raj Kumar Gupta.

This morning, Gupta and his ex-councillor son Pawan Gupta had held a show of strength at their place. Their supporters had suggested them to contest independently if the party did not change their candidature. Yesterday, Pawan Gupta had claimed that the 40,000 Aggarwal community in the Jalandhar (Central) and Jalandhar (North) seats, which was in their support, would defeat the two Congress candidates.

Gupta was the Jalandhar (Central) MLA in 2002 and had defeated former BJP minister Manoranjan Kalia. This time, Gupta father-son duo had filed their claims from both Jalandhar (Central) and (North) seats. With Gupta announced the candidate, the party which had not so far fielded any candidate from the community in Doaba or Majha will win the support of Aggarwals, said a party insider. However, many feel that the fact that Gupta is over 80 years could go against him.

As the party realised that it was not just Avtar Henry who could oppose Bittu but also Gupta, the party sensed that a dual revolt would surely damage the prospects of the candidate. Since yesterday, several Congress workers, including councilors, had resigned from the party. Today more Congress councilors, including Jaswinder Billa, Baldev Singh Dev, Kuldeep Mintu, Banti Neelkanth and Palni Swami, resigned from the party. Ex-councillor Ganga Devi too quit today. Henry’s supporters had announced two-day ultimatum yesterday. They had been seeking ticket for his son Bawa Henry as Avtar Henry’s vote had been cancelled. Henry has again called a rally tomorrow at his office. “My supporters will decide next action,” he said.

Contrasting day and evening scenes

Even as it was a celebration mode outside the house of Bittu in the morning, with his supporters garlanding him and his car and house at Rajinder Nagar all decked up with party buntings, the situation changed completely in the evening. All stickers on his cars were torn by his supporters in the evening. But Bittu maintained his calm, “I am a party loyalist and will remain so, no matter my ticket has been withdrawn. It is totally a prerogative of the party to announce a ticket.”

Similarly, it was a gloomy scene at the house of Gupta in Windsor Park in the morning which turned into a celebratory mode all of a sudden in the evening. His supporters came with sweets and drummers charging up the atmosphere.

Gupta’s old grouse goes off

Raj Kumar Gupta, who had till now been nurturing the grudge of his ticket getting cancelled by the Congress just after the filing of his nomination papers in 2012 from the Jalandhar (Central) seat in favour of Rajinder Beri, has had a similar situation coming in his favour this time. After Bittu’s ticket was cancelled to replace him as the candidate, Gupta said his old grouse with the party was removed completely now.