Congress leaders get fake ‘Kishor’ calls, plaint filed with DGP

Parvesh Sharma

Tribune News Service

Sangrur, May 3

“Prashant Kishor (PK) is calling you repeatedly, but you are not taking his calls. He wants to have your CV to finalise the Congress candidate from Sunam,” Jagmohan Sharma, general secretary, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, told Daman Thind Bajwa, a party candidate from Sunam in the last Assembly elections.

Sought Rs7 lakh

A person, posing as Prashant Kishor on the phone, promised a Congress ticket from Sunam if I paid Rs7 lakh. — Daman Thind Bajwa, Congress leader

Will probe matter

We will conduct investigations as it is a serious matter. — Vivek Sheel Soni, Sangrur SSP

Daman panicked for a second thinking not taking PK’s calls might damage her chances of getting the ticket. Her husband Harman Bajwa, however, asked her to call on the number provided by Sharma.

“Initially, I thought the person on the other side of the phone was PK and replied to his queries as he is the principal adviser to CM Capt Amarinder Singh and a known political strategist. But after having spoken to him for some time, I realised there was something fishy as a person like PK would never indulge in loose talk or demand money,” said Daman, while showing her complaint to the DGP and SSP in this regard.

The person posing as PK first talked of resume sent by another Sunam leader and even shared his details. Harman, sitting by Daman’s side, asked her to get more details from the “fake PK”. Finally, when the suspect promised her the ticket from Sunam on the condition that she dropped Rs 7 lakh in Jalandhar, the couple realised they were being targeted by a gang active in Punjab.

“After checking with seniors, a trap was laid, but the gang members stopped taking calls and switched off their mobiles. Some other Congress leaders have also received similar calls. Whether they paid money or not, it’s a matter for police to investigate,” said Daman.

Sharma, Congress leader from Ludhiana, confirmed he got a call from an individual who identified himself as PK. “I only conveyed his message to Daman to call him,” he said. Kishor could not be reached for comment.

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