Tit for tat in civic body elections
Gurdaspur: Politicians and bureaucrats admit, albeit clandestinely, that the civic body polls should be discontinued because of the “farcical conditions” in which they are held. The ruling dispensation in Chandigarh, be it the Congress or the SAD-BJP combine, ensures that only its loyalists are ‘elected’ as councillors, presidents and mayors. From 2007 to 2017, when the SAD-BJP alliance was in power, it made sure that the party swept all local body polls by hook or crook. This time, when the Congress hit the bull’s eye by scoring 29/29 in Gurdaspur, former MLA Gurbachan Singh Babbehali was quick to put the blame on the “high-handedness” of the Congress. On this, Cabinet Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa reminded Babbehali of an old Hindi adage “jaisee karni, waisee bharni”.
Flame of glory reaches Faridkot
Faridkot: ‘Swarnim Vijay Mashal’ or the flame of glory, which is on a year-long tour across the nation, was received by Col HJ Singh (retired), a 1971 war veteran, at the Faridkot military station on Saturday. It was given a special guard of honour, followed by wreath-laying in the memory of soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice for the country. ‘Swarnim Vijay Varsh’ is being celebrated across the nation to mark India’s victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war.
Assaulted, Cong leader adopts ‘Gandhigiri’
Muktsar: After the daylight murder of Youth Congress leader Gurlal Bhalwan in Faridkot, the former vice-president of Muktsar Municipal Council, Yadwinder Singh Yadu, who suffered a murderous attack a few hours before the polling for the municipal council elections, said on Friday that he didn’t want action against anyone for the attack on him. An injured Yadu, who won the MC election from ward No. 4 as a Congress candidate, said he wanted to show the right path to the youth. Notably, he is admitted to a private hospital here and has received stitches on his head. He even appealed to both Congress and SAD to forget this episode and move ahead.
A gift for children of migrants
Abohar: Hundreds of East Punjab families had migrated to Abohar in August 1947. One of them, headed by Bishesharnath Vij, developed farms on the outskirts of the town and later engaged migrants from Uttar Pradesh to assist them in agricultural activities. For the welfare of their children, the Vij family provided funds to set up a government primary school. The school has been upgraded up middle standard and is dedicated to the memory of Bishesharnath’s son Ram Prakash Vij. On the occasion of the 25th death anniversary of Ram Prakash, the family organised a programme. Around 23 brilliant students were given scholarships and study material. Blankets were gifted to needy families.
