NRIs taking keen interest in panchayat poll

Barely two days ahead of the deadline for filing of nominations for the posts of sarpanches and panches during ensuing panchayat elections, NRIs (non-resident Indians) started making their presence felt in their respective regions.

Irrespective of their political allegiance, senior political leaders are extending support to candidates of their choice with intent to prepare ground for their own election to the Assembly or Parliament in future. There are others whose agenda is to either contest the election himself or launch some other member of the family in the fray for the sarpanch’s post.

Indian Overseas Congress UK President Kamal Dhaliwal acknowledged he and his NRIs friends from Canada and the US had come to India with intent to support activists of the party contesting the panchayat elections in villages of the Amargarh segment, Malerkotla.

“Though we were made to understand that the candidates are prohibited from contesting elections on the party ticket, we came here to ensure that aspirants owing allegiance to our party win by wide margins,” said Dhaliwal, showing satisfaction over the outcome of his meetings held with residents of some villages.

Ahmedgarh Market Committee’s former chairman Harjinder Singh Kaka said NRIs from almost all villages had been taking keen interest in the poll campaigns in their respective villages.

“Having visited several villages of the Amargarh and Malerkotla constituencies, we have found that almost all aspirants contesting the election for the post of sarpanch have relatives or friends settled in foreign countries. While some NRIs are extending support to their candidates by mobilising voters through telephone calls, others offer financial support,” said Kaka.

Nirbhai Singh Nathumajra said he had to reschedule his programme to visit his native village with intent to discuss issues related with the constitution of the panchayat.

Zora Singh Cheema, a Bahujan Samaj Party leader, said several NRIs had shown keen interest in the constitution of panchayats in the region and some of them were visiting their villages for short trips with intent to extend support to candidates of their choice. He acknowledged that Lovely Kumar, an NRI , had come to support his close associate and renowned commentator Gaurav Jindal.