CHANDIGARH: The election result Of Faridkot would not have any repercussions on the future Akali ‘scenario, feels Shiromani Gurdwara. Parbandhak Committee president ‘Gurcharan Singh Tohra.

“The of Parkash Singh Badal has nothing to do with the fate of the party at Faridkot,” he said in an exclusive interview at Gurdwara Manji Ambala City in Haryana.

‘When pointed out that i ‘was going ‘around in the Akali circles that he would en resignation of Badal from the president ship in case the Akalis lost Faridkot, he said   categorically, “I would not seek his resignation Moreover, in case Babli Brar loses, I don’t think Harcharan Singh Bra would tender his resignation from the chief minister ship.” He said he ‘would rather like to strengthen the hands of Badal as seeking his resignation would only weaken the party. He denied that he deliberately avoided campaigning in Faridkot.

‘This architect of the Akal politics cover the years justified prosecution of Badal as future Chief Minister saying, “After all, somebody has to be projected as the future Chief Minister. Tohra, who has come to be re; as the Pope of the Sikh, claimed the Akali Dal (Badal) would win majority of the 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab. He was confident of pocketing Patiala, Ropar, Sangrur and Bathinda seats, he has reasons to stake claim to these four seats as he campaigned only in these four constituencies. Interestingly, he did not go to Faridkot, the seat considered to be the most prestigious in the state. This state is witnessing a close contest between Sukhbir Singh Badal sons of Parkash Singh Badal, Kanwaljit Kaur Brat (Babli Brar) daughter of Chief Minister Harcharan Singh Brar and sitting MP Jagmeet Singh Brar. He explained his absence saying, “I was allotted only these four constituencies.” He did not say anything more. He did not rule out Akalis grabbing Tarn Taran and Faridkot from the ruling party and said it was a close fight at Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

Fc had been a strong votary of Akali Dal entering the election arena alone and voicing his views publicly. He has now changed his mind, “Even if all Akali factions unite, we need the support of at least one party The Bahujan Samaj Party suits us more than the Bharatiya Janata Party especially in the rural areas in the new permutation and combination,” he said. Of course, he fully realizes that no party can manage the transfer of all its votes to its alliance partner.

He said other Akali factions had tried 10 damage the prospects of the ‘Akali Dal (Badal) by putting up candidates. His effort would be to consolidate the gains of the Lok Sabha poll. “The voters would now realize that the leaders like Akali Dal (Amritsar) president Simranjit Singh

Mann and the Bharatiya Kisan Union have only harmed the main Akali Dal Outfit and would be wiser from us rare “he said. He was particularly critical of Mann, he said the person who had been speaking against the Constitution and discarded the 3-foot sword which Declaration had which he insisted on carrying after his election to the Lok Sabha in 1989.

Tohra, who has been lording over this supreme elected body of the Sikhs for more than two decades, has no ambition of becoming the Chief Minister of Punjab. “Chief Minister Ship is not my subject he said.

Despite projection of Akali Dal (Badal) president Parkash Singh Badal as the future Chief Minister in the Lok Sabha elections, a section of the party leaders strongly feel that it is Tohra ‘who is waiting in the wings and rather this is his only ambition now. When further pressed that some of the party Leaders continue to have this thinking, he stuck to his earlier reply.

Article extracted from this publication >>May 8, 1996