Gurdaspur Diary: Contenders vs pretenders

In the season of heightened political activity, an interesting battle has been going on between pretenders and contenders when it comes to getting the party ticket. The pretenders are the ones who never sacrifice themselves. They will never understand the meaning of ‘total dedication’ to their party and therefore they will never taste glory. The contenders are the ones who demand of themselves the absolute maximum limit and are willing to pay the price. When a pretender applies for the party ticket, his main goal is not to get the ticket itself but rather he will be angling for the chairmanship of a board or corporation. He can never see beyond this. However, when a contender applies for the party nomination, he is seeking to work for the betterment of his constituents. The Congress party had set December 20 as the last date to invite applications. In Pathankot district, some clarity has emerged on who is who. The district comprises the Sujanpur, Pathankot and Bhoa assembly seats. Some aspirants have applied just to ensure they can use the occasion to bargain for something. And there are the serious ones who think if they get the ticket- and subsequently are elected-they will walk that extra mile for the benefit of the voters. As many as 20 Congressmen have applied for the ticket for the Sujanpur assembly seat. Already the bargaining process has started. A majority of them are doing the rounds of senior leaders telling them they will withdraw their candidatures provided “they are assured of some chairmanship or directorship of a state government entity once the party is voted to power.” The contenders are not making rounds of these leaders. On the contrary, they are with their voters apprising themselves of the problems they face so that “they can discuss these in the Vidhan Sabha, if they get elected.” In Pathankot, 15 persons have applied. In Bhoa the count has been pegged at 6. An interesting development is that wives of nearly all the aspirants, be they contenders or pretenders, too have applied. They have done so keeping in mind Priyanka Gandhi’s promise that women will be allocated some percentage of the total number of seats. The chalk will be separated from the cheese-and the contenders from the pretenders- in the second week of January when the Punjab Congress announces its final list of candidates.

Governor comes calling to city

This week Punjab governor Banwarilal Purohit visited Gurdaspur. Preparations had been going on for weeks for his visit. He visited the ‘Chotta Ghallughara’ memorial where 7,000 Sikhs were killed by the Mughal army in 1746 while 3,000 had been taken into captivity. Everything went off with clockwork precision except for the protocol part. Officials did not know that when you address a Governor, the word “His Excellency” must be used. The VIP was taken to all parts of the memorial and all he heard was officials addressing him as ‘Sir’. The dignitary must have felt awkward but never did he show it.

Canvassing begins in villages

After days of agonising wait, the AAP finally declared Raman Bahl as its candidate for the Gurdaspur Assembly seat. The former Chairman of the Punjab State Subordinate Services Selection Board (PSSSSB) had resigned from his post a few weeks ago. The moment he did so, rumours had started floating that he would be the AAP candidate. However, the final decision came last week. With Bahl’s candidature being made official now, things on the political firmament are warming up. The SAD-BSP alliance has already announced two time legislator Gurbachan Singh Babbehali as its nominee. The BJP and the Congress are still to make the names of their candidates public. Both Bahl and Babbehali can be seen canvassing in the villages. There are nearly 100 villages which fall in this Assembly seat. Both these leaders know that whoever wins the villages, takes the seat. Bahl’s personal equation with Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia is well known in the area. This is helping him in more ways than one. The other day in Pathankot, Kejriwal gave him a long, warm hug while standing atop a mini truck. The pictures later went viral on various platforms. The message was loud and clear-Vote for Bahl because he can get things done, courtesy his proximity to Kejriwal.

(Contributed by Ravi Dhaliwal)