Elevated track project stirs credit war

Ravi Dhaliwal
Tribune News Service
Pathankot, January 27

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The 3.6-km narrow gauge track running within the municipal limits of the city has sparked off a high-voltage credit war between the BJP and Congress with PPCC chief and former Gurdaspur MP Sunil Jakhar claiming that the project was cleared during his term as an MP and that Sunny Deol, at that time, was not even in the BJP leave alone being a parliamentarian.

On January 21, Deol publicly announced that the Union and Punjab Governments would chip in with grants in the ratio of 50:50 to complete the venture, leading residents to believe that he was, in the words of Jakhar, the ‘spirit behind the show”.

There are nine railway crossings on this stretch and whenever the Jogindernagar-Pathankot toy train passes, and it does so at least a dozen times a day, the crossings simultaneously close down. Deol has pegged the cost at Rs 286 crore while the Punjab Government’s estimate is Rs 240 crore.

Pathankot Congress MLA Amit Vij said the MP, guided by some local leaders, was pulling wool over the eyes of the residents. “In the two-day special session of the Vidha Sabha held recently, the track found a mention in the Governor’s address as point number 76 on page 26. Local leaders got a whiff of the things and called up Deol. On his part, the MP produced a letter implying that all good that was happening was due to him. Residents started thinking that the MP had done the hard work when the fact is that when Sunil Jakhar was the MP he was repeatedly assured by rail ministry officials that the project had been cleared. Jakhar had even held regular meetings with Railways Minister Piyush Goel to get things moving. Deol is just selling a product conceived, planned, and executed by the Congress,” said Vij. The legislator even produced proof of the venture finding a mention in the Governor’s address.

The PPCC chief said he was amazed at Deol’s “political effrontery.”

“The BJP has perfected the habit of selling old wine in new bottles. Actually, I had suggested the toy train should be terminated at the Dalhousie road station, on the outskirts of the city, but officials told me that Railways would suffer a loss of revenue. I then exhorted them to send expert teams to see if elevation was a solution. Finally, the teams decided on elevation and that decision was conveyed to me. Could anybody please tell me what exactly is the role of Sunny Deol?” said Jakhar.

Amit Vij also produced evidence that the Punjab Government, on December 31, 2019, had written to the Centre to share the cost.

“Days later, keeping in mind the Congress had pulled the rug from under his feet, Deol produced a letter claiming he is the hero. Nobody denies he is a film hero but here the real hero in the elevated track project is the Congress,” said the MLA.