Congress leaders seek Vikramjit’s resignation

Deepkamal Kaur

Jalandhar, June 5

Post triumphant victory of Charanjit S Channi, Congress candidate and former Chief Minister of Punjab, in the Lok Sabha elections, party leaders have begun seeking the resignation of Phillaur MLA Vikramjit S Chaudhary.

Now that Channi won the elections from the Jalandhar Lok Sabha constituency by a margin of 1.76 lakh votes out of 19,500 from Phillaur despite Vikramjit’s opposition, Adampur MLA Sukhwinder Kotli has said that Vikramjit should concede to his defeat and tender resignation as the MLA.

“Your pride has been shattered. You had been telling us that you will see as to how all those, who had brought Channi to Jalandhar, will be able to make him win. Now that Channi has reached the victory podium and that too with such a huge margin, it is a moral defeat for you, especially since you had levelled allegations of all sorts against our leader,” Kotli has told Vikramjit.

In the presence of other Congress MLAs, including Pargat Singh, Hardev S Laddi Sherowalia and Bawa Henry, and halqa in-charges from Jalandhar Dr Navjot Dahiya, Rajinder Singh and Rajinder Beri, Kotli sought Vikramjit’s resignation.

“If you are so much confident, why don’t you throw a hat in the ring. You should resign and re-contest. We all challenge you to accept the fight,” he said, adding that Vikramjit was in no way a match for his father and former Congress MP from Jalandhar Santokh Singh Chaudhary.

In Vikramjit’s absence, Channi’s elder son Navjit Singh had handled the campaign for his father stay putting in Phillaur for over a month. The party leaders have also come up with Vikramjit’s picture from a BJP polling booth in Apra alleging that he was indulging in anti-party activities.

Reacting to the demand for resignation, Vikramjit said: “Kotli is nobody to seek my resignation”. Vikramjit was placed under suspension by the party after he had turned rebel and had issued releases and gave interviews to the media against Channi’s candidature. He had been seeking ticket for himself or his mother Karamjit Kaur Chaudhary, who had lost by 58,000 votes to AAP in May 2023 bypoll. The MLA’s mother had joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and campaigned against Channi and in favour Sushil Rinku in the elections.

Pride shattered

Your pride has been shattered. You had been telling us that you will see as to how all those, who had brought Channi to Jalandhar, will be able to make him win. Now that Channi has reached the victory podium and that too with such a huge margin, it is a moral defeat for you, especially since you had levelled allegations of all sorts against our leader. — Sukhwinder Kotli, Adampur MLA