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FRIDAY, JANUARY 13, 2017
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Punjab heads for triangular contest
Traditional rivals, the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) combine and the Congress, are aware of the political challenge being posed by the fledgling Aam Aadmi Party JAIDEEP SARIN, CHANDIGARH
W
ith some days to go for crucial assembly elections in Punjab, political uncertainty looms over the frontier state on the issue of who will assume power post-March 11, once the results are declared. The reason for this is that Punjab, for the first time, is witnessing triangular contests in most of the 117 assembly constituencies. Traditional rivals, the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) combine and the Congress, are not only fighting each other, but are aware of the political challenge being posed by the latest entrant on Punjab’s political turf — the fledgling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). As of today, none of the parties seems to have the edge, even though each one of them claims to be heading for a clear, and even sweeping, majority in the February 4 election. Not surprisingly, in this uncertain period, a rather unusual question is being asked: “Will Punjab end up with a hung assembly?” Till about a year ago, the AAP
Congress leaders Dr Manmohan Singh and Captain Amrinder Singh launch party’s manifesto ahead of Punjab assembly polls, in New Delhi. (Photo: IANS)
had made formidable inroads in the state and opinion polls even suggested a massive win. But a lot has changed since then. After seemingly peaking at the wrong time, the AAP started imploding politically from June last year. Thus, the party is fighting two battles — one with the Akali Dal-BJP and Congress, and the
NEWS DIGEST
EC censures Sakshi Maharaj NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on January 12 censured BJP MP Sachchidanand Hari Sakshi, better known as Sakshi Maharaj, for his controversial statements in which he blamed 'Muslims' for India's population boom. The Commission held that the remarks were a violation of the Model Code of Conduct and rejected the Uttar Pradesh MP's contention that the statements were not
in a public or election meeting and as such did not come in the ambit of the poll code. “The Commission has considered your reply and has not found it satisfactory. Any statement to the effect of promoting enmity between different classes of society in connection with election on the grounds of religion made during electioneering or otherwise is violative of MCC,” the poll panel said.
Madame Tussauds in Delhi soon NEW DELHI: World famous wax museum Madame Tussauds is set to debut in India in June, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan and American pop star Lady Gaga’s statues as some of the star attractions. “Madame Tussauds will open doors in June this year,” Anshul Jain, General Manager and Director of Merlin Entertainment Pvt Ltd, said here at a press conference. The first India branch of the museum will be in the capital New Delhi. The museum, renowned for the creation of detailed and lifelike wax figures, will house statues of prominent figures from the world of sports, Bollywood, politics, et al. Amitabh is likely to attend the
launch of the museum, which will be spread across the first and second floors of the Regal Cinema complex in Connaught Place here. This is the 23rd branch of Madame Tussauds across the world, and Merlin Entertainment is looking forward to a red carpet welcome. —IANS
second one within itself. Allegations of corruption in allotment of tickets, accusations of immoral activities of some leaders, lack of any big leader from Punjab who could be projected as the party’s face, and internal rumblings about “outsiders” — mainly leaders from Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and other states — running the AAP
show in Punjab at the cost of local leaders, have all taken a toll on the party. In the past six months, there has been an exodus of state and district level leaders from the fold. But top party leaders like Arvind Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh, Durgesh Pathak and others are upbeat about AAP repeating a “Delhi-type political
magic in Punjab” when it won 67 of the 70 assembly seats in the 2015 assembly polls. Things are not too tidy either with the ruling Akali Dal-BJP alliance or the main opposition party — the Congress, which believes it is on an upswing. The Akali Dal-BJP alliance, which has been in power in the state since 2007 for two consecutive terms, is aiming for a third stint. Akali Dal president and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal is out to once again deploy his strategic skills which, in the 2012 assembly election, broke the five-year AkaliCongress cycle of governments. But his party faces anti-incumbency of the past decade, charges of corruption, and criticism that the financial health and clout of the ruling Badal family — headed by 89-year-old Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal — has been multiplying at the cost of the state. All the three major players are charting a difficult and uncertain course, leaving the voters a tad confused about which is the lesser evil.
‘Some forces plotting to split us’ MOHIT DUBEY, LUCKNOW
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amajwadi Party (SP) Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav made a passionate pitch to his supporters and party workers here and said that while some forces were out to split the party, he was doing everything to ensure that did not happen. “This party has emerged out of a lot of labor, hard work and struggle of party workers and its founding leaders, I will neither allow it to disintegrate nor the party symbol to go,” Mulayam told an unscheduled interaction with workers at the party office at Vikramaditya Marg here. Appearing resigned to the fate of an imminent split in the party he formed 25 years ago, Mulayam Singh also said he has given everything to the party and that he was left with nothing. “Mera jo bhi tha, maine party ko de diya hai. Par sabne ye manna chahiye ki yeh party sangharshon se yahan tak pahunchi hai (I have given everything to the party and everyone should accept that the party has reached here after much struggle),” he said in one emotive tone even as his supporters raised slogans in his favor. The Samajwadi Party chief stated how he had gone to jail during the Emergency when Akhilesh Yadav was a kid. He also mentioned how
Samajwadi Party (SP) Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav in Lucknow. (Photo: IANS)
Shivpal Singh Yadav, his younger brother, who was seated next to him, would bring food for him to the prison during his period of incarceration and later hide it at various places. Targeting his cousin, Ram Gopal Yadav, who is mentoring the Akhilesh Yadav faction, the Yadav chieftain said everyone now knew who was trying to break the party. “Everyone knows who has met the leaders of our opponents,” the 77-year-old leader said and pointed out that while he has mingled with opposition leaders these were “just social courtesies”. He was apparently referring to potshots taken by Ram Gopal at
him with regards to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s presence at a family wedding in Saifai, Uttar Pradesh. He also accused the Rajya Sabha member, who was expelled from the party on December 30 last year, of going ahead to form a separate party — the Akhil Bharatiya Samajwadi Party (ABSP) with the party symbol of a motorcycle. Political observers here feel that Mulayam Singh was now reconciled to the fact that all efforts of a patchup with his son have failed and that a split in the party is imminent. With elections to the state assembly just round the corner, fear of the party symbol being frozen are doing the rounds in both camps.