CHANDIGARH: A Soviet-type election process is on in Punjab with Amarinder Singh a Congress (I) puppet being elected “unopposed” from the Samana Assembly constituency. Another Congress (l) man Dibagh Singh Daleke too was elected “unopposed” from the Tam Taran Assembly seat.
Reports from districts at the end of the withdrawal of candidates from the contest on Wednesday showed that no Sikh militant group or individual is contesting the poll Almost all Akali groups too are keeping away from the election The latest to join the boycott is Sukhjinder Singh who floated a new Akali Dal 10 days ago after leaving his parent Akali Dal (Badal) group. He announced the boycott plan to newsmen with almost all senior Akali leaders present at his Sector 3 residence. Sukhjinder Singh said his party’s candidates at many places had not been allowed to file nomination papers.
“The Samajwadi Janata Dal of former Prime Minister Chander Shekhar has not set up any candidate in Punjab. Nasib Singh Gill General Secretary of the Punjab unit of V.P Singh-led Janata Dal publicly announced his party’s plan not to join the poll process which he said was a fraud of democracy with all mainstream Sikh groups keeping out of the poll. However Gills parent party has taken a different position in public and its spokesman said at Delhi that the party’s candidates are contesting.
Thus while on the one hand the election boycott is overshadowing Punjab election-eve polities on the other hand the election management on governments behalf appears to have been taken over by Punjab police director general KP.S. Gill Gills men alone decide who should be the candidates. The chief selection commissioner.
T.N Seshan has received at least 30 complaints alleging that the police prevented candidates from filing nomination papers to facilitate Congress (I) or other “approved candidates.”
Punjab chief secretary Tejinder Khanna confirmed widespread complaints and stated he had asked the police as well as the district authorities to “investigate” the complaints. The affected parties are B.SP the youth Janata Dal and in one case even the Akali Dal (Kabul Singh) which is contesting in collaboration with the Congress (I). Akali Dal (Kabul)s candidate from Sirhand Assembly seat Gurinder Singh had to take the army’s help to file his nomination papers as the police prevented him from entering the S.D.Ms office. However the moment the army left Gurinder Singh was whisked away by the police. From Sirhand constituency a few others Mohan Lal Singh Harpreet Singh and Parminder Singh too were prevented from filing their nomination pappers.
Kewal Bharti an independent candidate was among 10 similarly treat in Kharar Assembly constituency Bharti is general secretary of all India Kisan Madatiior Sabha. In a letter Seshan he said he was whisked away by the police on the pretext of providing him security He managed to free himself from the police station only to be detained at a police check post. The constable on duty told him that he had orders to keep him in detention ill the dead line for fling the nomination papers was over.
Similar reports were also received from Batala Nauchora Pannuan Sunam and Lehra Gaga seats. At Naushehra Pannuan the Akali Dal (K) candidate Charanjet Singh and from Sunam B.S.P. candidate Moti Ram was whisked away by the police.
V.T.R. Veerapa Gounder who unsuccessfully contested against Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi alleged at Delhi that the Punjab police prevented him from filing nomination papers from Patiala Lok Sabha constituency. Gounder said he was detained by the police along with tree other candidates near Patiala o be released only after the time for filing the papers was over.
The Akali Dal (Kabul) parliamentary board chairman Amarinder Singh and the Congress (I) candidate and former minister Dilbag Singh Daleke were declared elected unopposed from the Samana assembly constituency in Patiala district and Tarn Taran assembly constituency in Amritsar district respectively as the deadline for the withdrawal of nominations to the 13 Lok Sabha and 117 assembly seats ended at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday.
A record number of nominations were withdrawn and left in fray were 81 candidates for the Lok Sabha and 582 for the remaining 115 assembly seats. Of the 1225 nominations 33 were rejected while 517 withdrew. The record low number of candidates is at tribute to the boycott call given by the major Akali and Sikh student’s federation factions and the militants.
Interestingly eight candidates “withdrew” from Samana seat to make it possible for Amarinder Singh to be declared elected “unopposed”. These included a Congress (I) candidate a BP. man a B.S.P man and five independents Amarinder Singh had put up papers from two other constituencies Sumana and Kharar.
It is well known in political circles that the Indian government has decided to appoint Amarinder Singh as chief minister whatever the political permutations and combinations as between Congress) and Akali Dal (Kabul).
For instance India’s external affairs ministry persuaded the Canadian high commission in Delhi last month to arrange a meeting between a visiting Canadian team of parliamentarians and Amarinder Singh the future chief minister of Punjab.
Many people would perhaps recall that perceptive observers in Punjab had seen a rat even Amarinder Singh’s from Congress (I) as M.P. in 1984 to protest operation “Blue Star”. He was considered an intelligence “plant” on Sikhs to be used later. In March 1986 there were reports in a section of the Sikh media in Punjab that Surjeet Singh Bamala was being discarded and Amarinder Singh was being made chief minister.
Article extracted from this publication >> February 14, 1992
