After shrines, ticket aspirants in Gurdaspur flock to astrologers

Ravi Dhaliwal

Gurdaspur, April 11

Astrologers are helping ticket aspirants to devise a strategy which will be in sync with their planetary positions to ensure they get the party nomination even.

This assumes significance as the mainline political outfits, barring the BJP, have not announced their candidates for the Gurdaspur parliamentary seat.

Apparently to correct their cosmos, contenders are being asked by soothsayers to perform rituals which include visiting the Vaisnhu Devi temple, throwing coins in the Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC), partaking particular types of food and making lavish donations to social causes.

Some forecasters are even advising AAP contenders on the date and time to visit Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh in Delhi. Earlier, national convener Arvind Kejriwal was the go-to man but he has now been replaced by Singh.

Dr Samrendra Sharma, a Pathankot-based academician who has been a beacon-light for numerous politicians of the area, including an ex-MP and several MLAs, says one of the favourite rituals recommended by fortune-tellers is the Baglamukhi puja.

Mata Baglamukhi, also known as the Goddess of power, is a much sought deity. Her importance lies in the assumption that “she can deactivate political enemies.” An AAP contender was recently asked to invoke her name if he had to make sure that his “party colleague” no longer remained in the race for the ticket.

Pathankot-based Pandit Mithilesh Shastri is known for his “accurate predictions”. Although he tends to play down visits of leaders, people close to him reveal that once elections are announced, a steady stream of leaders can be seen outside his residence.

“Some politicians think we possess a unique, innate ability to see most aspects of most of the situations all at once. That is why they flock to us. They know that when their entire well-being for the weeks leading to the elections is about hope, hype and the unknown, anything that lights the path ahead is welcome,” said Shastri.

In Gurdaspur city, there are two Vijay Sharmas who are illuminating the days of the politician with hope. One of them, Vijay Sharma from Chhabkara village, remains busy attending to a horde of aspirants. He says now contenders are coming to him and later, it will be the candidates who will come.

“If things go the aspirants’ way, everything will be fine. If they do not, they must remember the Shakespearean quote- The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings,” remarked Dr Samrendra Sharma.