Jagtar Singh

  Unique and multidimensional Punjab Lok Sabha polls 2024 different from Punjab 2019 Ground Zero Jagtar Singh Chandigarh, May 31: Just hours before Punjab goes to the polls, some issues need to be kept in mind. Punjab’s historical political dynamics can be, and usually is, different from its electoral dynamics. The driving force behind the historical political dynamics has been the Sikh religio-political dynamics. The electoral dynamics can get dictated by several other factors, although at time, this factor could also be the religio-political dynamics, as was the case in 1989 Lok Sabha elections and   boycott of the 1992 Lok Sabha and the Assembly elections. The boycott by mainstream Sikh parties too was at level part of the electoral behaviour. The duopoly in electoral dynamics was shattered by the Aam Aadmi Party in 2022 Assembly elections although this nascent non-ideological political formation otherwise swearing by the “name” of Shaheed Bhagat Singh made ...

  Two binaries emerging in Punjab’s multi-polar polls where last 72 hours are always crucial   Ground Zero Jagtar Singh Chandigarh, May 28: The inter-play of socio-political forces in Punjab in the run up to the June 1 Lok Sabha elections is unprecedented. This is besides that established fact that the religio-political dynamics of this state has always been different from the rest of India, even when the boundaries of this country touched the Khyber Pass connecting with Afghanistan. It is for the first time that so many main political players are in the fray independently thereby making the contest multi-polar. Then there are two other eruptions in the electoral matrix making the multi-polar contest all the more interesting, and also important for future dynamics of not only Punjab but also India as the roots of this phenomena are not in too distant a past but in not so recent period of militancy. It is after decades that Punjab is going to the polls without a...

  Move to restore credibility not reflected in Akali Dal’s otherwise well-articulated manifesto Ground Zero Jagtar Singh Chandigarh, May 19: The election manifesto of the Shiromani Akali Dal has always been more than just documenting some promises or slogans. These manifestos have been historical documents of the party that reflect socio-political path of development of this unique state of Punjab that is not just a geographical entity. And over the years, it is the Shiromani Akali Dal that well-earned the position of being the voice of this region that has strategically been sensitive for the Indian sub-continent in history. Interestingly, after some years’ gap, this party yesterday made a valiant bid to start its journey back to its roots from which it had digressed. It is the same phraseology, idiom and philosophy that used to characterize these documents of the party till 1997, although the party had earlier deviated from its path in February 1996 at its 75 th ...

  Lok Sabha elections in Punjab fail to even touch state’s socio-economic contradictions Ground Zero Jagtar Singh Chandigarh: Move over traditional dhabas. KFCs, Macdonalds, Subways, Café Coffee Day, Tim Horton and the like now dot Punjab’s countryside along the highways. Modern integrated food complexes have come up and more are coming up that maintain what can be called as international standard, including that of cleanliness. A family of three, including one man and two women with one wearing a symbolic Gatra, entered one such complex as it was opening in the morning near Jagraon in the Malwa hinterland. The confident rural women had their choice of filling of the Subway burger. Apparently, they were used to the new food habits. Not a case in isolation. Havelis still serve traditional food. This write-up is not about the changing consumption pattern. This is one side of Punjab, especially   of the countryside   and semi-urban variety that has adopted ...