Jagtar Singh

  Is Punjab for sale going by the offers to voters that have been made by political parties?   Ground Zero Jagtar Singh   Punjab that witnessed more than a decade long militant political struggle in eighties and a successful agrarian struggle last year that attracted global attraction seems to have turned suddenly apolitical in the run up to the electoral battle. This is the summing up for the electoral narrative that characterise the Assembly elections for which the polling is scheduled for February 20 with just hours to go. The political formations have made their bids taking for guaranteed that the voters in this border state are for sale. Paradoxically, this is one state whose religio-political dynamics is different from all other states but this is for the first time that this characteristic has been blurred. It is the open market that has taken over. If one political party offered Rs. 1000 to women as monthly assistance, another has raised the bid to...

  Rahul Gandhi raises specter of revival of terrorism in Punjab   Ground Zero Jagtar Singh   Militancy that characterised the dominant political narrative in Punjab for more than a decade beginning 1980 has staged a comeback in the electoral discourse in this state in 2022. The revival of terrorism (Atankvaad) is the main issue that former Congress president Rahul Gandhi   has been hammering at his election meetings in Punjab since yesterday. He today forcefully raised its specter especially in the context of the Aam Aadmi Party. “You would not find a Congress leader at the house of a terrorist but leaders from AAP would be”, he alleged. He talked of threat to peace in this state that had been rocked by political violence that is terrorism for one section and militancy for the other. He also talked of divisive agenda of the BJP in this context that   he said had the potential to spark this fire in Punjab. The context was yesterday’s c...

  Deras from Sacha Sauda to Damdami Taksal resurface in Punjab’s electoral discourse   Ground Zero Jagtar Singh   The Sant Samaj led by the Damdami Taksal today extended support to the Shiromani Akali Dal at crucial juncture of the first ever 5-dimensional Assembly election in Punjab scheduled for February 20. This election is critical because Punjab has historically been gate-way to the Indian sub-continent and in this election, the Aam Aadmi Party that is perceived to be an ‘outsider’ is making all out efforts to capture power as part of its pan-India design. For Arvind Kejriwal who is the chief minister of semi-state that is Delhi, Punjab is a stepping stone. For the first time the Punjab election is having such pan-India denominator. The Sant Samaj that represents majority of the deras in Punjab   has come out with the support to the Akali Dal within two days of release on furlough of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh serving jail terms...

  Congress leadership weighing option of accommodating both Channi and Sidhu   Ground Zero Jagtar Singh   As Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu today again left nothing to imagination so far as his ambition is concerned, the party leadership is learnt to be weighing the option of adjusting him too along with Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi while announcing the chief ministerial face on February 6. The announcement is to be made by Rahul Gandhi at a virtual rally at Ludhiana to connect with the Congress rank and file at the grassroots. Going by the indication available, based upon the survey, the party is likely to go ahead with Channi as the chief ministerial face. However, at the same time, Sidhu could be conveyed that in case of the party retaining power, Channi could be the chief minister for half the term with the other term going to him. This arrangement won't be made public at this stage. Sidhu, in a veiled attack today morning, gave ...

  Congress leaders in Punjab battling over what presently is mirage -The CM Chair   Ground Zero   Jagtar Singh   The present Assembly election in Punjab is different from the earlier ones for yet one more reason. The top Congress leadership that is ruling party in Punjab is engaged in no-holds-barred fight over what under the given situation seems to be mirage - who would be the chief minister in case even by a remote chance the party manages to retain power for which a chief ministerial face has to be declared. Normally, this situation emerges when the party is not in power. In this case, the party has a chief minister in Charanjit Singh Channi who has the distinction of being the first from the scheduled castes to occupy this high office in this state. This is a two horse race in which the competitors happens to be Channi and state party chief Navjot Singh Sidhu. While Channi is low profile and has been taking pains to project himself as the commo...

  BJP’s shadow over Delhi Sikh gurdwara panel continues to darken hitting the Akali Dal   Ground Zero Jagtar Singh   On the surface of it, the resignation of recently elected Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management   Committee chief Harmeet Singh Kalka from the presidency of the Delhi state Shiromani Akali Dal might not seem to be important. He has ostensibly resigned to serve the Delhi Sangat while rising above politics. Nothing wrong with it on the surface. He has stated in his resignation letter, “In the DSGMC election, the SAD Delhi unit got a lot of support from the sangat and has entrusted   the responsibility of being the DSGMC president to me. Now, it is my responsibility that I should serve rising above party politics after taking all members along. So, I am resigning from the post of the president so that I can serve the sangat of Delhi while remaining fair. ” He has also cited the new parameters set by SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal that DSGMC pre...