JALANDHAR: Senior Vice President of the Akali Dal (B)and the party’s nominee for the by-election from here Kuldip Singh Wadala has alleged that the police in rural areas are preparing lists of those voters who are not Supporting the Congress(I) an are likely 16 vote against it when the polling takes place.
Wadala, while talking to the newsmen, recently, alleged’ that these lists were being made for future harassment of the voters who do not vote for the Congress and cast their votes, if possible, through impersonation to ensure the victory of the Congress candidate.
Wadala said that the government of Beant Singh had completely belied the hopes of the contest being a free and fair one. Official Machinery, he alleged, was being misused. The ministers campaigning for the by-election were staying in government rest houses and bungalows and there was no room available for the leaders of the opposition in these houses.
He alleged that senior police officers Of Punjab, including three ‘Senior superintendents of police and half a dozen of deputy SPs along with large contingents of other employees, were regularly collecting information.
Wadala suffered a setback when 14 senior leaders of the Akali Dal (Manjit) resigned from the party and joined the Akali Dal (Mann) to work in support of its candidate Ajit Singh Bains.
AISSF vice president and a close associate of Manjit Singh, Kamil Singh Jodpuri were among those who resigned from the party. Others who have quit include Saheb Singh, general secretary of the Lohian circle unit; Jagtar Singh Sohal, Surjit Singh Aliwal, Kamail Singh Phoolon, Sukhdev Singh Shakot, Swaran Singh Khalsa, Gurdip Singh Jaj, senior vice president, Kapurthala; Jarnail Singh Gazipur; vice-president, Kapurthala circle, Gurdial Singh president, Sultanpur Darshan Singh, president, Kaputhala block; Joginder Singh Bajwa, Jasbir Singh, secretary, Nakodar.
Bharatiya Janata Party state unit president Madan Mohan Mittal has accused Chief Minister Beant Singh of trying to frighten Hindu voters in 4 bid to win their support for the Congress (I) candidate in the by-election.
Commenting on the remarks of Beant Singh, who is reported to have cautioned the Hindu electorate against voting for the BJP candidate saying it would only help the Akali candidate, Mittal said the Chief Minister, by making such statements, was trying to inject communal virus in electioneering.
Refuting the Congress(I) claim that the vote for it would be vote against militancy, the BJP leader charged the Congress(I) with being the “mother of militancy and patron of Bhindranwale.”
Mittal asked Beant Singh as to what political input they had put to solving the problem on a lasting basis, He said the Congress I government at the Center had also not done anything at the political level to solve the Punjab problem.
Article extracted from this publication >> May 21, 1993
