GS Paul
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, January 21
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said here today that Amritsar had remained “unrepresented” in Parliament due to its absentee MPs, alluding to BJP-turned-Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu and PPCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh.
Jaitley, who was here to campaign for Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina, BJP candidate for the Lok Sabha bypoll, said, “For the past more than 12 years, local MPs have stayed away not only from this constituency but also from Parliament.”
When asked about Sidhu’s scathing attack on the SAD-BJP alliance, he said, “I don’t think it’s necessary for me to respond.” On the AAP challenge in Punjab, Jaitley said, “There was a time when the party appeared to be emerging as a strong contender, but it failed drastically in Delhi, people got to know it better.”
SAD ‘boycotts’ rally
Dinanagar: The Gurdaspur unit of SAD “boycotted” Jaitley's rally here, a development that may impact the prospects of BD Dhuppar, the BJP candidate. Gurdaspur district president Ashok Vaid said it was exclusively a BJP function.
BJP manifesto today
Jalandhar: Special incentives to the industry along the Punjab border are likely to feature in the manifesto of the BJP for the Assembly elections. It will be released on Sunday by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley at a function in the city. the BJP may announce a slew of reforms, including a single window system for levying of sales tax. TNS
Row over chopper use
Pathankot: Jaitley was put under the scanner by the ECI after it sought an explanation over the mode of transport -- a chopper -- he has used to reach Pathankot from New Delhi. Senior leaders feigned ignorance over the move, but administration officers confirmed that Jaitley had been asked to give an explanation. TNS