Cong trying hard to win back bastion
From A.S. Prashar & Jasmine Sandhu Sandhewalia
Tribune News Service

PHILLAUR: The Congress in Punjab is trying hard to regain control of a traditional party bastion of Phillaur in a grim triangular battle with the Democratic Bahujan Samaj Morcha backed by the SAD-BJP combine and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) allied with the third front.

The Congress has fielded Mrs Santosh Chaudhary, a former MP, while the Democratic Bahujan Samaj Morcha has renominated Mr Satnam Singh Kainth who represented the seat in the dissolved Lok Sabha. The BSP has denied ticket to the former MP, Mr Harbhajan Lakha, and put up a new comer, Mr Avinash Chander. While the Congress is supported by both Communist parties which have a sizeable following in the constituency, the Democratic Bahujan Samaj Morcha has the support of the ruling SAD-BJP alliance. The BSP which allied with the Congress in the last poll is trying its luck this time in alliance with the relatively untested third front consisting of the SHSAD of Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra, and a few other splinter Akali groups.

Mrs Santosh Chaudhary has represented Phillaur for one term when she was elected in 1992. She is the daughter-in-law of the late Ch Sunder Singh, a well-known Congress SC leader who remained a member of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha from 1952 to 1980 representing Narot Mehra (SC) . In 1980 , he shifted to Phillaur and was elected to the Lok Sabha, defeating among others Master Bagat Ram (CPM). He was re-elected from the constituency five years later only to be defeated by Mr Harbhajan Lakha in 1989.

After his death, Mrs Chaudhary was fielded by the Congress who romped home successfully.Mrs Chaudhary lost to Mr Lakha in 1996. In the elections held in 1997, the Congress left the Phillaur seat to the BSP as part of its alliance with that party. Mr Lakha was finally defeated by Mr Satnam Singh Kainth, a one-time trusted ally with the BSP chief, Mr Kanshi Ram, who broke off with his mentor last year to throw his lot with the SAD-BJP.

Mrs Chaudhary is banking on the split in the Akali Dal, charisma of Sonia Gandhi and her own past performance as an MP from Phillaur to see her through this time. She recalls how she prevailed on the then Railways Minister, Mr C.K. Jaffer Sharief to recommission the railway station at Rahon which was in the process of being closed down and the railway lines removed during 1994-95.

The BSP candidate, Mr Avinash Chander, belongs to a business family of Jalandhar and is married in Phagwara. He debunks propaganda that the BSP supremo, Mr Kanshi Ram, had dumped Mr Harbhajan Lakha and fielded him because he could spent more.

“This is not so. Mr Kanshi Ram has done what he thinks is in the best interest of the party and the Dalit community”.He claims that he is getting full cooperation from Mr Lakha who, even though denied ticket, is vigorously campaigning for the party nominees in Phagwara and elsewhere in the state. Mr Avinash Chander says that his grandfather was a well-known social worker of the area and since he was a well-do-businessman, had donated a tidy sum for the construction of a Harijan dharamshala. The community in turn-honoured him with the title of “seth”.

He does not agree that the BSP is now a declining force in Punjab and elsewhere in the country. Instead of 9 MLAs in 1992, the party now has only one representative in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha. Mr Kanshi Ram who represented Hoshiarpur in the Lok Sabha in 1996 abandoned the idea of seeking re-election from the constituency last year.

“The Dalits are a solid force standing unitedly under the leadership of Mr Kanshi Ram”, he asserts.He is seeking votes in the name of B.R. Ambedkar and Mr Kanshi Ram and promises to do much better than his predecessors in the development of the constituency.Interestingly, Mr Satnam Singh Kainth is also seeking a re-election in the name of B.R. Ambedkar and is being backed by the ruling SAD-BJP alliance.

He has addressed a series of meetings in the constituency where he claims he has been getting very good response.It has nine assembly segments namely Phillaur, Nurmahal, Adampur, Nawanshahr, Banga, Phagwara, Bhulath, Sham Chaurasi and Sriharigobindpur.