Rs 25 crore grant for Dera Sachkhand Ballan triggers AAP-Congress credit war

Deepkamal Kaur

Jalandhar, March 11

With the Punjab Cabinet on Friday approving the release of a Rs 25 crore grant to Dera Sachkhand Ballan near here for setting up Guru Ravidas Bani Adhyayan Centre, a credit war has erupted among the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Opposition Congress.

Bypoll in mind

Dera Sachkhand Ballan has a huge following and all parties are eyeing its support ahead of Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll

The Lok Sabha bypoll in Jalandhar, necessitated after the demise of Congress MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary on January 14, is expected to be announced anytime soon.

The dera has a huge Dalit following and all parties have been eyeing its support. The Congress leaders said that on December 31, 2021, then Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi had presented a cheque for Rs 25 crore to the dera to set up the Guru Ravidas centre. The party alleged that after coming to power, the Aam Aadmi Party stopped the release of the grant.

According to the AAP government’s directions, the amount would be released under the Punjab Nirman Programme “to address development needs at the grassroots”. The grant will be released within a month by a district-level committee constituted under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner.

The matter resonated even in the Vidhan Sabha today. While AAP MLA from Kartarpur reserved constituency Balkar Singh lauded the step, Adampur Congress legislator and Dalit leader Sukhwinder Kotli flashed pictures of former CM Channi handing over the cheque of the same amount to the dera nearly 14 months ago. “If you were to make the payment now, you should have added another Rs 25 crore to the project,” said Kotli, taking a swipe at the government.

Channi had then announced that the research centre would be set up on 100 acres near the dera. The land, however, is yet to be acquired.

The dera wields considerable influence in the region, especially the SC Assembly segments of Phillaur, Adampur, Kartarpur and Jalandhar West. Leaders cutting across party lines, including Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, have paid obeisance here in recent past. Dera chief Sant Niranjan Dass is currently in Dubai on a religious programme.