Abrupt end to political career of Punjabi singer-turned-politician Sidhu Moosewala

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Bathinda, May 29

Widely acclaimed for his singing, Sidhu Moosewala didn’t enjoy a similar success in his short political career, which came to an abrupt end with his murder. He joined the Congress in December last year ahead of the Assembly elections.

His entry into the party didn’t come easy as several Congress leaders, who were eying ticket from Mansa, dissented against his induction just before the elections. Despite a stiff resistance, the party banked on the singer’s popularity and fielded him from Mansa. However, he, too, like many other candidates, lost in the AAP’s statewide wave. AAP candidate Dr Vijay Singla, the former Health Minister, who has been arrested on the corruption charges, defeated him.

Despite losing the polls, Moosewala continued meeting people and listening to their grievances. His first political appearance was in the panchayat elections in 2018, when he went door to door in his village to seek votes for his mother Charan Kaur for the sarpanch’s post. His mother won the polls comfortably, after which he started taking interest in development of the village.

He recently addressed a press conference on the arrest of the Mansa MLA, which happened to be his last. “I am not going anywhere. I will live here and I will die here.” This is the statement which he repeated whenever he took to the stage while campaigning during the Assembly elections in the Mansa segment.

Known for his songs on gangsters, Moosewala, had a massive fan base. He held a degree in electrical engineering and studied music in college. He later relocated to Canada and these days was staying at his house in Musa village in Mansa.