Vikramjit Chaudhary-Charanjit Channi fight over Jalandhar seat gets murkier

Tribune News Service

Deepkamal Kaur

Jalandhar, April 12

The fight for getting Congress ticket from Jalandhar seems to have got murkier with Phillaur MLA Vikramjit Chaudhary having started launching direct attacks against frontrunner and ex-Chief Minister Charanjit Channi.

Row over ex-CM’s namaz position

A day after ex-CM Charanjit Channi attended Eid celebrations in Jalandhar, a video went viral wherein a Muslim leader is objecting to his position while offering namaz. Channi is heard saying that no one should try to gain political mileage in religious functions.

Channi, on the other hand, has increased his number of visits to Jalandhar, indicating his stand to contest from here despite an open revolt by the party MLA. While he was here yesterday to attend Eid celebrations, he is expected to be here again tomorrow at Dera Sachkhand Ballan to attend the Baisakhi programme.

The aggressive posture being shown by both Congress leaders to get ticket is coming as a huge advantage to party rivals. The resignation of Chaudhary as the chief whip of the party and his statement in the media yesterday that Channi was visiting deras and other religious places for atoning his sins committed during his tenure as the CM are triggering speculations that he or his mother Karamjit Chaudhary could join AAP.

The delay by the Congress to announce ticket from Jalandhar has led to withholding of announcement of ticket in other parties too. Though CM Bhagwant Mann has said the ticket for Jalandhar would be declared on April 16, the AAP leadership too seems to be in wait of the possible denial of ticket to the Chaudhary family for its advantage. The name of former SAD leader Pawan Tinu as AAP nominee has also been doing the rounds, though he denies it.

Some leaders are also blaming Channi for issuing confusing statements to the media by saying that there are other contenders too from Jalandhar.

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