For Dera Baba Nanak bypoll, AAP sticks to halqa incharge

AAP has decided to stick to its halqa incharge Gurdeep Singh Randhawa as its candidate from the Dera Baba Nanak Assembly segment.

In the 2022 Vidhan Sabha poll, despite an AAP wave sweeping the length and breadth of Punjab, Randhawa fared poorly and ended up with the wooden spoon bagging 31,742 votes. Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa of the Congress had polled 52,555 votes while Ravi Karan Kahlon of the SAD stood second by garnering 52,089 votes.

There were many aspirants but what tilted the scales in favour of Gurdeep Randhawa was the fact that he remained the halqa incharge for more than two years and removing him at this stage would send a wrong message to the cadre.

He is also senior vice-chairman of the Punjab Industries Development Board. It is an open secret in Dera Baba Nanak that despite losing, Gurdeep wielded more clout than the elected MLA. “Civil and police officers were at his beck and call. No decision pertaining to the area would be taken in Chandigarh without consulting him. He lost the poll but was bestowed upon with the powers of an MLA by his party. Postings and transfers of officers in Dera Baba Nanak were done by Gurdeep,” said a senior Congress leader.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, which was won by Sukhjinder Randhawa, AAP trailed the Congress by 4,600 votes from the Dera Baba Nanak Assembly. This was, yet again, considered to be a setback to Gurdeep and there was even talk of sacking him as the halqa incharge.

His father, Harwant Singh, was considered to be close to Sukhjinder’s father and former PCC chief Santokh Singh Randhawa. He was an ardent follower of Sukhjinder before the two fell out with each other after the latter denied him the ticket for the post of village headman a few years ago.

“The area residents are facing a plethora of problems. I am aware of all of them. The first thing I will do after being elected as an MLA is to improve the condition of link roads and improve potable water supply in villages,” said Gurdeep.

Aware of problems

The residents are facing a plethora of problems. I am aware of all of them. The first thing I will do after being elected as an MLA is to improve the condition of link roads and improve potable water supply in villages. — Gurdeep Singh Randhawa