VOICE OF EX-SERVICEMEN PUNJAB

Pilgrim’s regress

Badal govt places religious politics before developmentLegend has it that an 18th century French princess once suggested the peasants could have cake if they didn’t have bread. It could have been out of disregard for the have-nots or complete ignorance of reality. Similar legends are being created right now in Punjab. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, visiting the state on Sunday, revealed that certain projects sanctioned for Punjab could not be started because the state had failed to contribute its share of the investment. Ironically, only this year, the state government started free tours for pilgrims from all 117 Assembly segments under its Mukh Mantri Tirath Darshan Yatra Scheme using special trains. On a request of the Sikh wing of the RSS, Prabhu also agreed in principle to start special trains from Punjab, Chandigarh, and Mumbai to Patna Sahib.

The Punjab Government is also in the process of spending around Rs 1,500 crore on memorials and monuments to various religious figures or events. Most of the projects will be completed in time for the elections. A similar exercise was undertaken before the 2012 polls too. The priorities are not only skewed but also reveal a disturbing belief in politics of religion and caste (to the governments' credit, multiple communities are being addressed in the projects). What confirms the fear is SAD leader Jagir Kaur’s reported statement that roads are 'routine things' that governments do, but 'Badal Saheb' would be remembered by future generations for these memorials.

Parkash Singh Badal has built a formidable reputation for politics of populism, focused on quick electoral dividends, and not long-term building of the state, of which he has been the longest-serving Chief Minister. His ‘sangat darshan’ programmes are nothing but unaccounted on-the-spot handouts that are not part of any larger plan. Such expenditures create no permanent infrastructure or source of employment, and yet are a huge drain on the exchequer, which is then unable to pay salaries or for projects such as the Amritsar-Patti rail line. Family is dear to Mr Badal. Whether its fortunes have to be built on a legacy of cynical electoral victories or monuments to real development is a choice he has to make.

Rahul to meet top leaders of Punjab Cong in Delhi tomorrow

Chandigarh, July 19

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi will hold a meeting with top leaders of the party's Punjab unit tomorrow in Delhi to discuss the strategy for the high-stake Assembly polls in the state in 2017.

The meeting will be attended by Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh and state in-charge of the party Asha Kumari, party sources said.

Besides, Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Charanjit Singh Channi and the party's campaign committee chairperson Ambika Soni will also be there.

The meeting will take place in the backdrop of BJP MP Navjot Singh Sidhu resigning from Rajya Sabha amidst speculation that he, along with his wife, a BJP MLA, may join the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The Congress, which has twice lost the Punjab Assembly polls to the SAD-BJP combine, is eyeing to wrest power in the state next year.

Amarinder has already launched a mass outreach programme, 'Halke Vich Captain' (Captain in your constituency), which Congress leaders claim has been getting a "massive response" from the public. Besides, several sessions of 'Coffee with Captain' had also taken place before 'Halke Vich Captain'.

Both the programmes, centered around Amarinder, have been designed by poll strategist Prashant Kishor's Indian Political Action Committee (IPAC) team.

Congress has already asked ticket aspirants to submit applications to the state unit by August 15 while Amarinder has said "winnability" of a candidate would be the only criteria for allotment of party tickets.

The party has even asked ticket aspirants to give an undertaking not to contest polls against any Congress candidate if they are not given tickets. — PTI

Travel Bhagat: Rs 34 lakh fuel bill of 18 months

Vishav Bharti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 18

The oldest minister in the Parkash Singh Badal Cabinet comes across as the most active, going by the travel fuel bills.

According to information obtained under the RTI Act from the State Transport Department, Rs 34 lakh was spent in just 18 months (April 2014 to October 2015) on the fuel for Minister for Forest and Wildlife Bhagat Chunni Lal’s two vehicles.

Put into figures, it means a distance of 24,000 km was covered by each car every month. The daily average: 800 km.

Even if his car was driven at the permitted limit of 80 km per hour on highways, the Minister at the age of more than 80 travelled almost 10 hours a day without a single day’s break.

It is akin to travelling from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, a distance of 3,884 km, and back thrice a month.

Not that the other ministers are much behind Bhagat. Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa’s vehicle logged a fuel bill of Rs 31.46 lakh, Minister for Higher Education and Languages Surjit Singh Rakhra’s Rs 31.38 lakh, and Irrigation Minister Sharanjit Singh Dhillon’s Rs 29.48 lakh. The Transport Minister has a travel bug too. The fuel bill for Ajit Singh Kohar: Rs 28.33 lakh.

Another senior BJP leader, Industries and Technical Education Minister Madan Mohan Mittal, spent Rs 25.87 lakh on the fuel, just a notch above PWD Minister Janmeja Singh Sekhon: Rs 24.67 lakh.

The Transport Department thus ended up spending Rs 3.45 crore on the fuel bill of the ministers in 18 months — almost Rs 20 lakh a month.

There are those ministers too who are much more active than Bhagat in social and political life, but the fuel bill is far less. Education Minister Daljit Singh Cheema, for instance, spent just Rs 4.08 lakh on fuel during the period, though his constituency Ropar is in close proximity to Chandigarh. Similarly, Agriculture Minister Tota Singh spent Rs 6.08 lakh on fuel in the same period.

Abohar residents send memo to CM, want sale of MC land cancelled

Allege the deal of land, initially meant for park, had benefited a BJP leader’s kin

Abohar, July 18

Dozens of residents of Dharam Nagari and neighbouring colonies have demanded the cancellation of sale of the Municipal Council land which was initially earmarked for developing a park.

Notably, Abohar MLA Sunil Jakhar had also flayed the MC for this “shoddy” deal and demanded its cancellation. He had alleged connivance of government officials with BJP activists in this regard.

In a memorandum sent to Chief Minister, Principal Secretary, Director and Regional Deputy Director of Local Bodies Department and Fazilka Deputy Commissioner today, Naunihal Singh, Pawan Jakhar, Charanjit Singh, Sumit Doda and other residents said the BJP-SAD ruled Municipal Council (MC) had in a meeting on February 15, 2011, earmarked 3.5 kanal to develop a park in Dharam Nagari adjacent to the ancient Panjpeer Dargah on the outskirts of the town.

A sum of Rs 9.46 lakh was sanctioned for the construction of a boundary wall but it was not constructed as the Local Bodies Department “had not given a nod for it”. Now, the MC on June 27 sold the same land during an “auction” for Rs 56 lakh to a brother of a BJP councillor in the presence of two representatives of the district administration and the Local Bodies Department, they said the market price of the land is about Rs 2.5 crore, the complainants claimed. The buyer, as per the memorandum, was carving out shops and residential plots over the “controversial” land in violation of the norms, they added. — OC

Oust Badals, say parallel ‘Jathedars’

Tribune News Service

Moga, July 18

Sarbat Khalsa-appointed ‘Jathedars’ Dhian Singh Mand, Amrik Singh Ajnala and Baljit Singh Daduwal today called upon the people of Punjab to dethrone the Badal family in the Assembly elections.

They alleged that the Badals had not only damaged the sanctity of Akal Takht, but also failed to arrest the culprits responsible for the sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib.

Talking to the media at Duneke village in the district, they said the SAD-BJP government was responsible for the total failure of law and order in the state.

Mand said Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his deputy Sukhbir Badal were suppressing the voice of the people. “People from all sections in the state are determined to teach the Badal family a lesson because they have no respect for any religion,” he said.

“We have called a peace march demanding justice for the victims of police firing at Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village, but the government arrested our supporters,” he said.

Defamation: AAP leader gets bail

Our Legal Correspondent

Ludhiana, July 18

Additional Sessions Judge Jaspinder Singh today granted interim bail to AAP leader Kanwar Sandhu in a defamation case.

Sandhu has been directed to appear before the trial court within seven days and furnish fresh surety bonds. Meanwhile, the trial court order for issuing arrest warrants shall remain stayed.

Defence lawyer Harpreet Sandhu claimed that he mistook the date as July 18 instead of July 16. It was stressed that the absence was neither willful nor intentional. The bail application will be taken up on August 3.

Delhi CM summoned

Amritsar: A local court has summoned Arvind Kejriwal to appear on July 29 in the defamation case filed by Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia. Others summoned included AAP leaders Ashish Khetan and Sanjay Singh.

Navjot Sidhu plays resignation stroke, AAP ready to catch him

HOWZAT Says Rajya Sabha berth was a ‘burden’; Aam Aadmi Party leaders exult with ‘welcome’ tweets

AMRITSAR: It was a googly that the BJP least expected on the first day of monsoon session of the Parliament on Monday.

Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, 52, resigned from the Rajya Sabha to which he was nominated in April, courtesy the saffron party, and is all set to join the Aam Aadmi Party- most likely as its chief ministerial face in poll-bound Punjab.

Sidhu’s surprise stroke is a culmination of his tense equation with the BJP since he was denied the BJP ticket in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Amritsar, a constituency he has represented thrice as the Sikh face of the saffron party.

While his resignation is a major setback for the BJP, it has come as a shot in the arm for AAP ahead of the high-stake assembly polls likely in January next. The Rajya Sabha secretariat has accepted his resignation.

Quick to exult at Sidhu’s exit, frontline AAP leaders welcomed the prospect of his joining the rookie party while dropping enough hints that he will be its trump card in Punjab.“A big role awaits Sidhu in AAP,” said Sanjay Singh, Punjab in-charge of the AAP.

But, what is clear is that Sidhu’s new political innings has dramatically altered the electoral landscape in Punjab.

Soon after his resignation on the very first day of his stint in the Upper House, Sidhu issued a terse statement, saying he had accepted the Rajya Sabha nomination at the behest of Prime Minister for the welfare of Punjab.

“With the closure of every window leading to Punjab, the purpose stands defeated. It is now a mere burden, I prefer not to carry it,” he said, adding with his trademark flourish for one-liners: “In the war of right or wrong, you cannot afford to be neutral. I can’t be self-centred, Punjab’s interest is paramount.” Older cars are more harmful for the environment as they have primitive pollution control systems installed and emit more harmful gases than their newer variants. Vehicular exhaust comprises a big chunk of the air pollution that chokes Delhi.The tribunal’s order came after the Delhi Police said it made repeated attempts to stop older vehicles from plying on city roads. “But they have hardly met any success,” the bench noted.

The traffic police said repeated challans and fine on offending older vehicles hadn’t fetched any result. “It is also stated that vehicles are released by the magistrates after imposing fine under the Motor Vehicles Act and the vehicles surface again on the roads,” the bench noted. The NGT also directed the ministry of heavy industries to file an affidavit, giving the status of electric and hybrid vehicles in India and also mention the benefits the government was considering for those who wish to dispose of old vehicles. The green court also ordered the ministry to write a letter to the chief secretaries of all the states within one week in this regard.

Last week, the NGT asked the Delhi government to submit an action-taken report on the ban orders and give data on the number of cars impounded. In reply, the Delhi transport department said it had impounded around 3,000 cars in the past year but had released them later.

In reply, the Delhi transport department said it had impounded around 3,000 cars in the past year but had released them later.

It said that according to the Motor Vehicles Act, only the RTO had the authority to deregister old vehicles.

The Delhi government had also implemented an ambitious road rationing scheme earlier this year, allowing vehicles to ply on alternate days based on their registration numbers ending with odd or even digits barring Sundays.

In ‘Indo-Pak situation’, which one are you, Capt asks Kejriwal

CAPT AMARINDER SINGH, Punjab Congress president He (Kejriwal) is yet again trying to put the blame of his own faults and failures on someone else. You (Kejriwal) are an anarchist by nature, a bad administrator and an excuse monger as you always try to pass the blame onto others.

CHANDIGARH: Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh took a dig at Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday for his remark that the Centre had created an “Indo-Pak situation” in Delhi.“Which of the two are you Kejriwal—India or Pakistan?” Amarinder said in a statement issued today, adding, “He (Kejriwal) is yet again trying to put the blame of his own faults and failures on someone else”.

“You (Kejriwal) are an anarchist by nature, a bad administrator and an excuse monger as you always try to pass the blame onto others. You are actually a wrong man at the wrong place,” Capt said.

“By the way, with the first showers, Delhi is flooded because the drains are blocked. Is that due to the Lt governor or the Prime Minister?” Amarinder said.

‘Kejriwal’s sewa at Darbar Sahib will not make AAP atone for its blasphemous act’

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, July 18

Former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader, Rajinder Kaur Bhattal here on Monday said Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal cleaning utensils at a community kitchen as part of ‘sewa’ inside the Golden Temple complex wouldnot atone AAP for its blasphemous act of releasing its youth manifesto carrying a picture of ‘Harmandar Sahib’.

Bhattal along with the senior leadership of Congress was addressing a rally in the Central Constituency from where DCC Urban President Rajinder Kumar Beri is a probable candidate of Congress. Beri had lost to BJP leader Manoranjan Kalia with a thin margin.

She questioned why it took Delhi Chief Minister two weeks to perform ‘sewa’ at Golden Temple after his party committed serious blunder hurting religious sentiments of people of state.

She said that AAP party supremo and its leaders are habitual offenders of indulging in absurd acts to draw attention of people.

She also underlined the need for improving infrastructure to strengthen industrial sector in the state. Bhattal in her address said industrial sector under Badal government has suffered immensely due to which state’s economic growth had been halted to significant extent.

She further said major and small industries had been made to confront various problems like undue delay in clearance of their projects, erratic supply of power and unfriendly atmosphere.

She held that there was a feeling of disillusionment among industrial sector owing to lack of farsightedness and flawed industrial policy of the Badal government benefiting only those who have allegiance to Badal family.

Bhattal said that as per report based on study by industry body Assocham Punjab’s investment growth rate has declined from the peak level of 91 per cent in 2007-08 to -5.1 per cent in 2014-15. Former CM said that her party had interacted with representatives and stakeholders of various trade and industrial organisations recently to ask for their suggestions and opinion as part of election manifesto formulating exercise of Congress for the ensuing assembly elections to be held in early 2017. “In case Congress came to power, it will give due consideration to suggestions and demands of industrial houses and frame its industrial policy accordingly,” she said.