JALANDHAR: The Jalandhar Elections were marked by large stale rigging and the use of impersonators in thousands to make the Congress candidate win.

The Beant Singh Government, left no stone unturned to win the ‘by-election with a handsome margin but in its effort to claim a than date from the voters has suffered a moral defeat due to its inability to reply convincingly to the election malpractices. “In his desperate attempt to enable the Congress to win the Jalandhar Lok Sabha seat, Beant Singh has only ‘Succeeded in placing a question mark Over the fairness of the poll,” writes “The Pioneer’, a Delhi based national daily, He further says: “IF Beant Singh and his party are Craving political legitimacy, they must carn it on the basis of their record in office and work on the ground. They can not hope to snatch it.”

It has become well known that the Chief Election Commission (CEC), TN Seshan, who had cancelled by poll in the Kalka parliamentary constituency in Haryana with much less violation of the model code, conived with the Prime Minister for getting electied the candidate from Punjab. Tithe Beant Singh Government was desperately searching for political legitimacy. “The May 21 Pioncer editorial adds that the run-up to the election was marred by the Punjab chief Minister and his ministerial colleagues indulging in an unseemingly spree of laying of foundation ‘stones for various schemes in gross violation of the model code of conduct for political parties. During the voting itself, impersonators jammed the booths in order to cast votes for the Congress.

But the most bizarre and shameful incident occurred towards the end of the day, when two Punjab Congress Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs), Pawan Kumar Bhardwaj and Baldev Singh Pakakalan, and their gunmen fired at a motorcade of Akali Dal (Badal) supporters. The two dozen odd rounds fired from automatic weapons narrowly missed the Akali leaders, but injured two party workers.

The attack on the Akalis was apparently preplanned and in retaliation for foiling the attempts of Congress leaders to get bogus votes cast from the impersonators. The police spared no effort to hush up the case apparently to bail out the Beant Singh regime, which was facing flak for subverting the poll process in the by-election.

Article extracted from this publication >>  May 28, 1993