Jalandhar Lok Sabha segment likely to see fight among fresh faces

Deepkamal Kaur

Jalandhar, February 28

The contest for the coming Lok Sabha poll from the Jalandhar (Reserved) seat is expected to witness the entry of fresh faces from all political parties.

Karamjit Kaur Chaudhary, wife of the late MP Chaudhary Santokh Singh, had contested the 2023 bypoll from the Congress.

Congress former Chief Minister Charanjit Channi seems to be the front runner for the ticket. The most popular face of the Dalits, Channi has been making frequent rounds to Jalandhar for the past two-three months. He has been visiting all deras here and had even attended shobha yatras in Jalandhar on the occasion of Guru Ravidas Jayanti. There also has been buzz that Channi could also be eyeing the reserved Fatehgarh Sahib seat.

• Karamjit Kaur Chaudhary, wife of the late MP Chaudhary Santokh Singh, had contested the 2023 bypoll from the Congress unsuccessfully.
• Even as AAP’s lone MP in the Lok Sabha Sushil Rinku has been quite active in Jalandhar, there are reports that he can be shifted to Hoshiarpur.

Chaudhary too has not forgone her claim and is harping on family legacy. Her detractors often say that she had lost by over 58,000 votes in the bypoll even when she had sympathy wave on her side, however, she retorts that bypolls are often swept by the ruling parties and its result should not be the consideration while finalising a candidate. Other than Chaudhary, former MP MS Kaypee is also seeking ticket.

Channi’s entry seems to have disturbed the plans of the Aam Aadmi Party too.

Even as AAP’s lone MP in the Lok Sabha Sushil Rinku has been very active in Jalandhar, there are reports that he could be shifted to Hoshiarpur. Alliance or no alliance with the Congress, the party is giving a serious thought to this move and is even planning to get surveys done on the idea of his shifting.

Meanwhile, the leadership is even contemplating on other names from Jalandhar among whom is minister Balkar Singh or a prominent SC face poached from another party.

As the farmer agitation has made the chances of an alliance between the BJP and SAD bleak, both parties have started looking for their prospective candidates. While sitting SAD MLA from Banga Dr Sukhwinder Sukhi was the Akali Dal candidate in the 2023 bypoll, it seems the party will repeat its 2014 candidate and ex-Adampur legislator Pawan Tinu this time. In 2023, Dr Sukhi was preferred over Tinu on the pressure of its partner BSP, there will be no such pull this time because of snapping of ties.

On the BJP front, the local BJP leadership does not seem to be in favour of repeating Valmiki Sikh face Inder Iqbal Atwal, who was the bypoll candidate in 2023. The names of former MLA Avinash Chander and former Chairman of the SC Commission, Punjab, Rajesh Bagha, too are doing the rounds.