Punjab civic polls: BJP, AAP accuse Congress of booth-capturing

Parvesh Sharma
Tribune News Service
Gurdaspura (Sangrur), December 17

The Bharatiya Janata Party and the Aam Aadmi Party on Sunday accused the Congress of booth-capturing and voter intimidation in several places in the state in the civic body elections.

Addressing a press briefing in Gurdaspura — a village 5 km from Sangrur — state BJP chief Vijay Sampla said: “Congress MLAs are roaming the streets of various cities of Punjab — including Patiala, Jalandhar and Amritsar —with goons and have captured polling booths. Our repeated requests to SSPs, DCs, and the State Election Commission have failed to yield any action”.

Union Minister Sampla, who was speaking from BJP Kisan Morcha leader Satwant Singh Punia’s house in the village, called the ongoing civic body elections farcical., and said Congress leader Preneet Kaur’s allegations that some Shiromani Akali Dal’s leaders beat up Congress leaders after civic elections of 2012 elections was “unfounded”.

 Kaur, wife of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, was responding to SAD’s allegations that the Congress had captured booths in an attempt to rig the elections under way.

State BJP secretary Aman Punia claimed that they received reports of Congress “goons” of threatening its leaders to stay away from polling stations. The BJP also said that small cities were also reporting violence they claim began on Sunday morning, and accused the Congress of “murdering democracy”.

“Since Punjab Congress leaders are well aware that they would lose elections, they have directed their goons to capture booths,” Punjab BJP vice-president Harjit Grewal said.

Sunam MLA Aman Arora accused the Congress of openly murdering democracy.

 “Congress government knows of its imminent defeat in MC elections across state. Therefore, its leaders have captured polling booths and thrashing all others. It’s murder of democracy,” Arora, AAP’s Punjab co-convener, said, accusing the Congress of trying to tamper with the election process since the start by rejecting nominations from other parties and refusing to give No Objection certificates without valid reasons.

“With goons, Congress can loot the elections, but it could not win the hearts of people. Punjab CM Capt Amrinder Singh has failed to fulfil even a single poll promise he made during elections. He is well aware that his all candidates are losing in Punjab,” Arora claimed, adding that his party was planning a protest by blocking roads and holding sit-in protests in