Drugs to spurious liquor: Punjab is jinxed as Congress and Akali
Dal become same side of the coin
Ground Zero
Jagtar Singh
It has ceased to matter as to which party is in power in
Punjab.
From deaths due to drugs to the killer liquor, the narrative
remains unchanged.
For record, the Congress in 2017 replaced the Akali Dal-BJP combine
that ruled for a record two terms. That has been the only change. Everything else
remains the same.
Change over a period is otherwise the law of nature and at
that level, some changes can be observed.
Along with the drugs, now spurious liquor is freely
available.
Earlier, the money used to change hand under the table. Now it
is not uncommon to see officials accepting bundles transparently and brazenly. There
has to be some change.
Of course, there is now also a rag-tag organisation that is
known as the Aam Aadmi Party that had been given the mandate by the people to
function as the main opposition to marginalise the Akalis completely. AAP
refused to respect that mandate and opted to self-destruct.
The over-ambitious people who had joined AAP never
visualised the role of being in opposition. That proved to be its undoing as
these people did not know as to how to behave as opposition. Many of them could
lose even their security deposit in case they take another chance.
It is for this reason that Punjab is all the more jinxed. The
people had tried but got rebuffed.
The polity is getting back to bi-polarity despite the fact
that difference has ceased to exist between the Congress and the Akali Dal.
The Congress and the Akali Dal are now the same side of the
same coin. The other side of the coin is blank.
One has to change the name of the leader on the statements
issued over different space and time. Or just remove the name from them and one
won’t be able to make out the difference.
The only common denominator is the crisis in which this
state has landed.
Should not one go back to 1996 when people of this state
were promised almost every day till February 1997 to turn Punjab into
California?
The Congress issued a manifesto before the February 2017,
only to forget it. But then Capt Amarinder Singh had sworn on a Gutka in the
run up to the elections.
There is one change now. This government is not owned by the
Congressmen. Several ministers registered their protest against the chief
secretary who was about to retire. He was suitably accommodated, rather
rewarded.
The chief minister has
a lot of advisers.
However, the retired bureaucrat that he chose to run his
government has at least thrice returned his official vehicles and staff to give
the impression that he does now want to continue. He is ‘persuaded’ to return. It
is too well known as to who are his opponents in the CMO that this official
heads.
Action has been taken in the spurious liquor case against
several officials but at the lower level.
The Congress used to attack the Akali mafia before coming
into power for the drug menace.
Now the Akali Dal is using the same terminology as
opposition party.
It is also too well known that mafia can’t operate without
political patronage.
The Congress had promised to change the excise policy. But then
it suits every ruling party.
Where should the buck stop under this situation?
The people should resign - to their fate?
Jagtar Singh ji you have done an excellent job in analyzing the present situation in Punjab politics. Your analysis elaborates the dancing going on within the traditional parties and the new emerging APP. As both traditional parties are getting closer and APP being official opposition could not understand and play it's role. As a result it is loosing it's relevance being a THIRD ALTERNATIVE IN PUNJAB. SO AS A RESULT THE VACUUM FOR THIRD ALTERNATIVE STILL EXISTS IN PUNJAB POLITICS. I fully agreed with your analysis and congratulations for the wonderful work.
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