I will fulfil people’s hopes: Sunder Sham

Sanjiv Kumar Bakshi

Hoshiarpur, April 20

“With higher posts, come higher responsibilities and I have always been ready to fulfil my duties and responsibilities. I, with all my sincerairy and honest efforts, will ensure to fulfil the expectations of the people of Punjab as well as Hoshiarpur”, said Sunder Sham Arora talking to The Tribune after the announcement of being inducted into the Punjab cabinet.

A huge corwd had gathered outside his house to congratulate him after his name for the ministry was announced. Arora, 59, has been in politics for more than 40 years.

Starting as an NSUI worker, Arora saw various highs and lows in his political career. He had been in the NSUI, from Youth Congress to member and office-bearer of the DCC, president DCC, member PPCC, general secretary, PPCC. In the 2012 elections, he had won the Hoshiarpur legislative assembly segment seat by defeating three-time MLA and BJP stalwart Tikshan Sud, regaining the traditionally considered a Congress bastion for the party. Arora, starting from helping his father in canteen, beganhis small knitting yarn shop around 30 years ago. Then he started investing in property and never looked back. Presently, he owns a huge real estate empire, a chain of senior secondary schools and also a multispecialty hospital. Well known for his social- religious activities, he also runs a charity organisation and now a social welfare trust on the name of his wife who had expired a couple of months ago. He had, in 2007, contested as an independent from the Hoshiarpur seat as a dissident against the party’s official candidate and had earned good votes. In 2012, the Congress gave him the ticket and he won the seat for the party and repeated his performance in the 2017 assembly elections. Considered a non-factional leader in Hoshiarpur, Arora had been politically aligned and very close to Amika Soni. Even during the last term when there was the SAD-BJP government in the state, he completed many projects with finances arranged with the help of Ambika Soni out of her MPLAD funds.