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Punjab : Parties begin drawing up strategy for elections |
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With the elections to the Punjab Assembly due in less than three months, the major political parties in the state have begun hectic consultations with possible allies on the sharing of seats. For the Akali Dal and the BJP, the poll is very crucial, after their dismal show in the last Lok Sabha elections when the Congress had a virtual sweep of the seats. While the Congress is busy in talking to the Left parties on the tie-up for seats, the Akali Dal and the BJP too are studying the constituencies to assess their strong points. Simultaneously, hectic efforts are on to bring about a rapprochement between Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal and former SGPC chief G.S. Tohra factions so that the prospects of the Akalis are not damaged, which would actually help the Congress. Badal’s injury which may keep him out of action for a few seeks is seen as a setback for the Akali Dal in the crucial run-up to the polls. The Congress too is a house divided with different factions currying favour with party chief Sonia Gandhi. In UP as well as Punjab, Sonia Gandhi is faced with the problem of groupism and attacks on the PCC chiefs.
Tohra closeted with Dhindsa in Delhi
Estranged Akali leader and former SGPC chief Gurcharan Singh Tohra met Union Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa in Delhi and discussed the current political situation in Punjab. Tohra had a brief encounter with the Congress leader Jagmeet Singh Brar also.
Tohra called on Badal at a Delhi hospital where he has been admitted for a major hip surgery. Though Tohra denied patch-up talks ever being initiated with Badal for electoral considerations, he clarified if ever a patch-up happened it would be based only on “principles”. He made it clear that before any talks could be initiated, Badal should first abide by a 1998 Hukamnama (commandment) of the Akal Takht directing the Akalis to be at peace till the conclusion of the historic Khalsa Tri-centenary celebrations.
Unity efforts initiated at the Prime Ministerial level, in the context of the ensuing Punjab Assembly elections next February, will take some time to materialise, according to political sources. The ice between Badal and Tohra has been broken and all grievances would be taken care of. If Tohra wants the ticket to be given to 15 MLAs belonging to his camp and a few other things, the Badal group is ready to concede. The Tohra-Badal unity before the poll will certainly help the Akali Dal gain in strength. A separate round of talks will take place some time this week when Badal is discharged from the hospital.
Meanwhile, the Punjab Pradesh Congress president Capt. Amarinder Singh has said that talks with both the CPI and the CPI(M) about seat adjustments are going on. Confessing that since both these parties have their pockets of influence in Punjab an alliance with them can help the Congress cash in on the “anti-Akali wave” in the state.
Although the PCC chief refused to comment on the hitches in forging an alliance with the two parties, sources revealed that the Left parties were claiming a large number of seats, while the Congress was haggling with them to lower their expectations. At present the talks have broken down, with Amarinder Singh dismissing these as “usual pre-poll hiccups”.
Kick-starting their election campaign with a belief that a “strong anti-Badal wave is sweeping Punjab” Singh said the Congress would greatly benefit from the “stifling atmosphere created by rampant corruption in the state. The Congress had earlier released a list of properties owned by Badal and his family, and Amarinder Singh says another chargesheet listing cases of corruption against the Akali-BJP Government would be released during the election campaign. He, however, confessed that his party would be left with no option but to follow a populist stand on issues related to farmers in view of similar commitments of the Akali Dal. “We would have to continue with free power and water for farmers although we have been warned of non-feasibility of such moves by economists,” he said.
The Congress has yet to take a public stand on another burning issue which is closer to the hearts of Punjab farmers community - that of globalisation of trade under the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Amarinder Singh alleged that the Akalis had “befooled Punjab farmers by their promise of filing a petition against the WTO.” The common peasant believes that “it’s a great stand,” he said. The PCC chief said the Congress would have a lot of explaining to do to the farmers on the issue.
Vajpayee’s pre-poll development package for State
Prime Minister Vajpayee announced a pre-poll developmental package of Rs 8120 million for Punjab last week. Addressing the concluding function of the bicentenary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s coronation, Vajpayee declared that Rs 4500 million would be earmarked for a four-lane highway between Jalandhar and Wagah, Rs 2000 million for water and sewerage projects in 10 cities, besides a Rs 400-million grant to upgrade the water supply in Amritsar. He also said Rs 1220 million would be utilised in the state under the Balmiki Ambedkar Malin Basti Awas Yojna. Vajpayee also said that a Software Technology Farm would be set up in Jalandhar and asked the state Government to send the proposal to the Centre immediately.
The huge financial package is obviously aimed at boosting BJP-Akali Dal prospects in the forthcoming elections to the state assembly. Chief Minister could not attend the rally following an injury he suffered in his bathroom. Badal had personally taken care to make the bicentenary function a big success by hosting it on a lavish scale. His message was, however, read out by his son Sukhbir Singh Badal. Expressing concern over the uprooting of several Sikh families from Afghanistan, Vajpayee said his Government would take every possible step to rehabilitate them as soon as the war was over.
Badal’s injury could not have come at a worse time for his party. With the Assembly elections not far away, Badal’s injury - he fractured his femur bone - which he sustained after slipping in the bathroom in Amritsar, is being viewed as a major setback in the countdown to the poll. Though the Government and the party are underplaying it, claiming that he needs only about 10 days rest, doctor say it will be at least six weeks before the Chief Minister is able to move. A senior Congress leader claimed that with Badal out of action for the next crucial one month or more, things had become easier for them. “It’s a cakewalk now,” he said.
There is no doubt about Badal’s ability to turn the tide in his party’s favour. Moreover, reaching out to the masses is something he loves doing, and his stamina is amazing. This is admitted by his detractors also. In fact recently senior Congress leader Jagmeet Singh Brar stirred up a hornet’s nest within his party by openly praising Badal’s ability to turn the tables. Admitting that Badal’s injury was a setback to the party, a senior minister said “His moderate image and his ability to project himself as one of the masses is his biggest quality,” adding that the party would have to work really hard to overcome this handicap.
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