Clean sweep in Gurdaspur

Ravi Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Gurdaspur, September 22

With the Congress making a clean sweep by winning all the 25 Zila Parishad zones, the focus has now shifted to the prestigious post of chairmanship of the body with four candidates being claimants.

With six of the district’s seven Assembly seats being represented by Congress MLAs, it was a mere formality for the party to emerge victorious. Politicking among top leaders has already begun for the top post.

Among the contenders are Ravi Nandan Singh Bajwa, son of Cabinet minister Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa, who incidentally also holds the rural development portfolio under which Zila Parishads fall, Arjun Partap Singh, son of Qadian legislator Fateh Jung Singh Bajwa, Sharanjit Kaur, wife of Sri Hargobindpur MLA Balwinder Singh Laddi, and Balwinder Singh, a known loyalist of Gurdaspur legislator Barindermeet Singh Pahra.

While Arjun Partap, Sharanjit Kaur and Balwinder Singh were elected unopposed, Ravi Nandan easily warded off the challenge of the SAD candidate in the Wadala Granthian zone.

Notwithstanding Fateh Jung’s assertions that his son was not in contention, sources revealed that Arjun Partap, who holds a management degree from a UK university, was definitely a contender. “I want a worker to be appointed as the chairman. This decision will send out a message that the Congress is a party of workers,” said Fateh Jung.

Out of the four, the most experienced is Balwinder Singh. He became sarpanch of Bhattian village in 1978 and was elected as a block samiti member in 1980. He also had a stint as chairman of the Gurdaspur Market Committee in 2007.

“It will be in the fitness of things that Balwinder holds the top post. As compared to others, he holds some, if not much, political experience,” averred an MLA.

Out of all the six MLAs, while six have shown an interest in getting one of their loyalists appointed, Cabinet minister and Dera Baba Nanak legislator Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa has shown no interest.

“It is the prerogative of Capt Amarinder Singh and PPCC president Sunil Jakhar to appoint the man of their choice. It will be good if a ground-level worker is given the job,” said Randhawa.

A top politician claimed that since Randhawa was instrumental in his party notching up a huge 44,000 lead from Dera Baba Nanak seat during the last year’s Gurdaspur Parliamentary by-poll, the CM may well reward one of his men with the chairmanship.