Eye on poll, Youth Congress holds rally in Gurdaspur

Ravi Dhaliwal

Gurdaspur, March 2

The Punjab Youth Congress (PYC) put itself in the election mode by organising an impressive rally at Pahra village stadium today in which hundreds of workers from the city and its adjoining towns took part despite inclement weather conditions.

Earlier in the morning thick clouds hung like a dark canopy over the venue following which it looked highly unlikely that the event would take place. However, the clouds gave away to sunshine giving much needed relief to the organisers.

In the absence of BV Srinivas, president of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), who reached late after he missed his flight from Delhi to Amritsar, PPCC chief Raja Warring and PYC president Mohit Mohindra, son of Brahm Mohindra, took control of the proceedings. The rally was organised by Baljeet Singh Pahra, president of the Gurdaspur district Youth Congress Committee.

If Warring was blunt and aggressive in his speech, Mohit Mohindra won much applause from the audience with his extempore which was laced with facts and statistics to prove that the Congress was well placed in all the 13 seats of Punjab.

Warring attacked the BJP for showing “insensitivity and tactlessness” in handling the ongoing farmers’ agitation.

Mohit Mohindra launched the PYC’s flagship programme ‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kissan, Jai Naujawan’. Speaking on the Jai Jawan aspect, Mohit said, “There is no guarantee of ex-Agniveers being absorbed by the paramilitary or police forces. Many youngsters, after having a stint as Agniveers will end up doing odd jobs. A fully trained jobless youngster becomes frustrated if he does not get a good job. The scheme offers no job security at all because once their four year tenure is completed Agniveers will again become jobless.” Speaking on the ‘Jai Kissan’ aspect, Mohit said “ The Congress had already committed itself to giving a legal guarantee on MSP whenever it comes to power at the Centre.

He also said that under the ‘Jai Naujawan’ scheme, the Congress government has drawn up a plan in which employment will be provided to youngsters by ushering in more industries.

Prominent among those who attended the proceedings were ex-cabinet Ministers Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa and Aruna Choudhury, Gurdaspur MLA Barindermeet Singh Pahra, ex-MLAs Kulbir Singh Zira and Davinder Singh Ghubaya and Abhyam Sharma, president, Pathankot Youth Congress Committee.