Category: Punjab

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India News Legal Punjab

SC upholds quashing of Punjab govt’s notification on NRI quota

A bench, headed by CJI D.Y. Chandrachud, refusing to interfere with the high court order, observed that the “NRI quota business must be stopped now”….reports Asian Lite News

The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a batch of pleas filed against the Punjab and Haryana High Court ruling which had quashed a Punjab government notification allowing distant relatives to avail of the NRI admission quota benefits in the state’s medical colleges. 

A bench, headed by CJI D.Y. Chandrachud, refusing to interfere with the high court order, observed that the “NRI quota business must be stopped now”.

“All these petition petitions are dismissed. Let us put a lid on this. This fraud has come to an end. This NRI business is nothing but a fraud,” remarked CJI Chandrachud.

The Bench, also comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, was dealing with three petitions, including a petition filed by the Punjab government, against the high court’s ruling quashing the notification issued to accommodate candidates under NRI quota, who are either the wards or the nearest relation of NRIs, including the brother or sister of the father, the brother or sister of the mother, the father and mother of father, the father and mother of the mother, and first degree paternal/maternal cousins.

The Punjab government, on August 20, modified the provisions to the extent that candidates who are the ward/nearest relation of NRI may avail of the benefit of NRI quota seats, in case NRI seats are left vacant.

After several petitions were filed before the high court, a bench headed by Chief Justice Sheel Nagu passed an ad-interim order staying the operation of modified provisions and ordered that the process of admission to medical courses be continued in accordance with the original schedule.

In its decision, the high court questioned the criterion that had been laid down to evaluate the guardianship of the NRI and said that “the evaluation of guardianship is so vague that it is apparent that the process is not wholly transparent”.

“If the admissions in the expanded NRI category to include non-genuine NRIs are permitted; the prohibition made on charge of capitation fee would serve no higher purpose, as the state/private colleges would be at liberty to reap the benefits by amending the provisions according to their whims,” it said.

Before the high court, general category candidates contended that modified provisions were issued after the last date for submission of the application under the NRI category had come to an end. Once the last date for submitting the application forms was over, the issuance of the corrigendum, which resulted in changing the rules of admission midway after the admission had begun, was not appropriate, they contended.

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Lite Blogs Punjab

‘Agla Varka’: New Initiative to Highlight True Essence of Punjab

Gill, who has worked in the North-East for several years carrying out research for books or working on projects, believed the region was misunderstood and seemed alien to people in Delhi, and elsewhere in the country…writes Sukant Deepak

In the year 2018, a bungalow in Amritsar metamorphosed from a private space to a ground for critical thinking, poetry recitation, cultural deliberations, book readings and more.

The idea was to reiterate the essence of Punjab eclipsed by mainstream narratives that are punctuated by ‘Khalistan’, negativity over the farmers’ agitation and the inability to recognise the finer nuances of those residing in the state, and of course, lift the discourse beyond the never-ending news about narcotics abuse in the state.

That is how in 2018, Majha House, founded by publisher and literary agent Preeti Gill in Amritsar, was born. The inaugural programme saw more than 200 people from Delhi and Punjab participating and watching the cultural fest. The real push for the House, however, came when the Covid pandemic struck and it organised several digital programmes that became very popular not just in India but also across the border in Pakistan.

“We started with a very popular series called ‘Sanjha Punjab’, which involved conversations between East and West Punjab during Covid, and is still running. It is quite a hit among the Punjabi diaspora settled in different parts of the world,” Gill told IANS.

Gill, who has worked in the North-East for several years carrying out research for books or working on projects, believed the region was misunderstood and seemed alien to people in Delhi, and elsewhere in the country.

“Now I increasingly feel that Punjab is the most misunderstood,” Gill said. “Films such as ‘Udta Punjab’ and ‘Chamkila’ have not projected a comprehensive image of the state that boasts of so much more than drugs, women being chased around, jeeps, and songs with double meanings.”

Talking about ‘Agla Varka: Reimagining Panjab – New Stories in a New Land’, an initiative that Majha House has launched in collaboration with the Kuldip Nayar Trust, a cultural platform to begin meaningful conversations on Punjab that reflect the realities on the ground, Gill said it will travel across India to tell stories about Punjab through curated events and experiences that will feature music, poetry, literature, performances, films and art.

Each annual edition will include at least three programmes spread throughout the year.

Supported by Kunzum Books, the inaugural edition, Agla Varka 2024, will kick off on June 29 at Theatre Kunzum in New Delhi with a conversation on ‘Punjab: A Question of Identity’. This will be followed by recitation of poetry and the release of Kirpal Dhillon’s book, ‘Identity and Survival: Sikh Militancy in India 1978-1993’, and conclude with a performance by storyteller and singer Rene Singh.

Other speakers and participants at the inaugural edition will include author and India’s former ambassador to the US, Navtej Sarna, writer-journalist Amandeep Sandhu, musician Rabbi Shergill, researcher and author Vinayak Dutt, award-winning filmmaker Bani Singh, poet, journalist and translator Nirupama Dutt, spoken word poet Amy Singh, academic and architect Sarbjot Singh Behl, and poet-singer, visual artist and designer Daras.

It will be back in New Delhi in early November with performances, poetry and more, and will end the year in Amritsar with a two-day festival in December.

Mandira Nayar from The Kuldip Nayar Trust and programme director, Agla Varka, elaborates, “I found that the Punjab I grew up hearing about, the idea of that state I inherited existed only in the stories of my grandfather (the late Kuldip Nayar, the famous journalist and diplomat).”

She continued: “His idea of India was shaped by the Sialkot he grew up in — the city of Faiz Ahmad Faiz, which was diverse, composite, and where he studied Urdu, spoke Punjabi, had a crescent tattooed on his arm for his best friend Shafqat, and his mother, a Sikh, lit a diya at the Pir’s grave every week. At a time when India is rewriting its history to include the ‘aam aadmi and the aam aurat, I feel it is essential to include the aam Punjabi.”

Talking about Kuldip Nayar’s vision of the unifying bonds between the Punjabs on the two sides of the border, his grand-daughter said, “He always said that we might be separate countries, but there was a peculiar bond between the two Punjabs. He always wanted to bring the two Punjabs together.”

Mandira Nayar concluded by noting: Peace is often seen as woolly-headed or impractical, or driven by nostalgia. For my grandfather, it was about economic independence for South Asia. It was about people and not the state.”

On Kuldip Nayar’s 100th birth anniversary last year, the Trust invited Sonam Kalra for her performance on the Partition.

“We have a lot of plans, but there was always this idea of deliberation around the essence of Punjab — precisely why we are starting with it,” Mandira Nayar said. “The idea is so much about identity and looking at inherited stories.”

Stressing that growing up in Bengal, the contemporary image of Punjab she encountered was of loud and pushy people. “But I want to know what happened to that image we inherited from our grandparents,” Mandira Nayar asked. “Of immense hospitality, bravery, and appreciation for the arts? Our effort is to reclaim all that.”

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-Top News PAKISTAN Punjab

Pak rights body urges repeal of Punjab Defamation Act

The conversation on amending the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 should also be revived. Finally, a law criminalizing enforced disappearances, used frequently to quell dissenting narratives, must be passed…reports Asian Lite News

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Friday organized a round table conference in Islamabad, raising their concerns about the Punjab Defamation Act.

The HRCP called upon the administration to repeal the act pushed through a defamation law to curb fake news, however, civil society, and journalists say that it infringes on freedom of press and expression.

HRCP in a statement said that it could build fears of a national firewall and greater censorship – the law’s real purpose is much more nefarious, aims to muzzle free speech and inhibit dissenting voices.

The event witnessed the participation of journalists, digital rights experts and civil society members who drew the state’s attention to receding civic spaces and democracy in the country.

During the event Law and Policy Expert Muhammad Aftab Alam while discussing the key loopholes of the Punjab Defamation Act 2024 pointed out that radical changes need to be made to the definitions of key terms such as ‘broadcasting’, ‘newspaper’ and ‘journalist’.

Moreover, journalist and researcher Adnan Rehmat mentioned that the law exceptionalised political and state elites and legalized discrimination. A member of the HRCP Farhatullah Babar mentioned that the law was yet another step in the militarization of the state and society, and tantamount to overwriting other laws, such as those governing the right to information.

Co-founder of Media Matters for (MMFD) Sadaf Khan pointed out a probable plan of the administration to install a national firewall and said this would broaden the scope of censorship by monitoring Internet traffic. “It was an ill-thought plan that had bred fear and mistrust,” she said. Furthermore, another MMFD member also added that such a move would have a serious economic impact on freelance work and online trading.

According to the HRCP statement academic and journalist Tauseef Ahmed Khan traced the history of censorship in the legacy media and chalked out a plan of action. Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists president Afzal Butt said that civil society must hold social media platforms accountable for blocking content on Kashmir and Gaza.

Former senator Afrasiab Khattak said that the establishment must be held accountable for its continuous overreach in such matters. Senior journalist Sohail Sangi added that the working conditions of media persons and press freedom were closely linked.

Further during the roundtable conference, the participants and experts of the various fields recommended repealing the Punjab Defamation Act at once, adding that ‘digital rights should be recognised in the Constitution’.

The conversation on amending the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 should also be revived. Finally, a law criminalizing enforced disappearances, used frequently to quell dissenting narratives, must be passed.

HRCP co-chair Munizae Jahangir felt that journalists, lawyers and activists must unite and consolidate their demands before the Parliament. HRCP Islamabad vice-chair Nasreen Azhar agreed, adding that activists must be more organized in countering online disinformation.

HRCP secretary-general Harris Khalique in the conclusive statement mentioned that ‘A nexus between the political leadership, big business and the state establishment is apparent,’ he added. To combat such repressive tactics, all rights-based movements must come together to develop a charter of demands that can be presented to the Parliament. (ANI)

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INDIA 2024 India News Punjab

Punjab records estimated 62.8% voter turnout

In a letter dated June 1 by Suneel Dutt Bhardwaj, Office Secretary, BJP Punjab Office, urged swift action be taken against the Chief Secretary & other erring officials of State of Punjab…reports Asian Lite News

The 13 parliamentary constituencies of Punjab that went to polling on Saturday saw an estimated voter turnout of 62.80 per cent, according to the data shared by the Election Commission.

As per the poll body data released on Sunday, Gurdaspur saw a voter turnout of (66.67 per cent), Amritsar (56.06 per cent), Khadoor Sahib (62.55 per cent), Jalandhar (59.70 per cent), Hoshiarpur (58.86 per cent), Anandpur Sahib (61.98 per cent), Ludhiana (60.12 per cent), Fatehgarh Sahib (62.53 per cent), Faridkot (63.34 per cent), Firozpur (67.02 per cent), Bathinda (69.36 per cent), Sangrur (64.63 per cent), and Patiala (63.63 per cent).

The Aam Admi Party and Congress, allies in the INDIA bloc, separately contested the elections in the state.

Meanwhile, the Punjab BJP filed a complaint with the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) on Saturday against the Chief Secretary and other erring officials for allegedly forcing MGNREGA workers to work despite there being a mandatory holiday throughout Punjab due to the general elections.

On the complaint by BJP Punjab to the CEO, the CEO directed all DCs to ensure to cast their votes.

In a letter dated June 1 by Suneel Dutt Bhardwaj, Office Secretary, BJP Punjab Office, urged swift action be taken against the Chief Secretary & other erring officials of State of Punjab.

In the previous Lok Sabha elections of 2019, the INC-led UPA alliance secured eight seats with a vote share of 40.6 per cent, while the NDA managed to secure four with a voting percentage of 9.7. The AAP, making its debut, secured one seat.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and AAP bagged 4 seats each while Congress secured 3 seats. The BJP managed to secure only two seats.

The voting for the 543-member Lok Sabha was held across seven phases over a period of 44 days from April 19-June 1.The counting will be done and results declared on June 4.

Polling for the earlier six phases of Lok Sabha elections was held on April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13, May 20 and May 25. Assembly polls have also been held in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh.

Odisha is also seeing simultaneous polls to Lok Sabha and assembly in the last four phases. The polling of the last phase started on Saturday at 7 am in the 57 parliamentary constituencies spread across seven states and the Union Territory of Chandigarh.

According to the Election Commission of India, over 10.06 crore electors including approximately 5.24 crore male, 4.82 crore female and 3,574 third gender electors are expected to exercise their franchise. (ANI)

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India News Politics Punjab

Kejriwal launches scathing attack against BJP in Punjab

AAP chief said that in the previous governments, traders and industries were fleeing from the state while in AAP’s 2-year tenure, leaving Punjab has topped…reports Asian Lite News

Launching a scathing attack on Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his remark that the Bhagwant Mann government will fall after June 4, Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday that the BJP thinks as they broke Shiv Sena, NCP, they can break Punjabis too but they will fail.

Addressing a rally here today, Kejriwal said, “They are running dictatorship in the entire country. Amit Shah said in Ludhiana that after June 4, our government will fall and Bhagwant Mann will not remain the CM. He is openly threatening the Punjab. They think that just as they broke Shiv Sena and NCP, they will break Punjabis too. Do not threaten Punjab, it will harm you.”

“They (BJP) have withheld Rs 9,000 crore of Punjab’s rights. Rs 5,500 crore is from the Rural Development Fund through which roads were to be built in villages. The money from the National Health Commission was to be used to build Mohalla Clinic. This is hooliganism. Politics should happen during elections,” Kejriwal added.

Further, the AAP chief said that in the previous governments, traders and industries were fleeing from the state while in AAP’s 2-year tenure, leaving Punjab has topped.

“When other parties were in power two years ago, traders and industries were fleeing Punjab. But now leaving Punjab has stopped. Our effort is to bring back those who have left, to give an opportunity to those who are here to build their businesses and to bring foreign investment into Punjab. In the last 2 years, investment of about Rs 56,000 crore has started in Punjab, which will employ about 3 lakh youth. If such a huge investment is coming, then it means the situation has improved,” Arvind Kejriwal added.

He further urged the people to vote for AAP in the Lok Sabha election and make it win all 13 seats in the state.

“If we have power at the Centre, we will be able to fight on the issues of the states. Today I request you to give 13 seats of Punjab so that your rights can be brought from the Centre,” he said.

Cong vows relief from GST on agricultural equipment

Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge said on Tuesday that if the INDIA bloc comes to power at the Centre, they will exclude agricultural equipment from the GST ambit.

Addressing a press conference here today, Kharge targeted PM Modi-led BJP government at the centre and said that when farmers tried to enter Delhi to put forward their demands, tear gas shells were fired at them.

“Punjab and Haryana, despite having less land geographically, produce the most in the entire country. The country gets food from these two states. The farmers here think that their prices should be good and fair according to the MSP. Farmers agitated (2020-21) and put forward their demands before the BJP government. But still, the government did not agree. Tear gas shells were fired at them. The farmer remained sitting on the streets for the whole year,” Kharge said.

“We will give legal guarantee to MSP which is one of our five Nyay (Justice),” he added.

The Congress President also mentioned that their government will also provide 10 kg of free grains to the people.

“Along with five Nyay, our party has also given 25 guarantees. We will give 10 kg grains free to the people. We will work to pay the crop insurance compensation amount within 30 days. We will exclude the agricultural materials from the GST ambit,” he said. (ANI)

‘BJP planning to arrest all AAP leaders’

After the Delhi Court summoned Delhi Minister Atishi in a defamation case, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal termed it a “dictatorship,” and alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party is planning to arrest all Aam Aadmi Party leaders.

AAP leader Atishi has been summoned by a Delhi court on June 29 in relation to a defamation case filed by BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor.

“I had said earlier that they will arrest Atishi next. They are planning to do so now. Complete dictatorship. In completely flimsy, frivolous, and false cases, they are arresting ALL leaders of AAP one by one. Every single opposition leader will be arrested if Modi ji comes back to power. AAP is not imp. Saving our dear country from dictatorship is important,” Delhi CM posted on X on Tuesday.

Moreover, the Delhi Minister questioned how the BJP formed the government in Goa, Manipur, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh.

“I want to ask the BJP how they formed the government in Goa, Manipur, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh. How do the MLAs reach the BJP from different parties? The BJP has to answer this. How does it happen that the NCP is split into two halves and all of their leaders come to the BJP, and all their CBI/ED cases are closed? When Chaggan Bhujbal comes to the BJP from NCP, then why do the CBI and ED file closure reports? When Praful Patel comes to the BJP then all matters of the Air India scam are closed. When Ajit Pawar comes to the BJP, then all cases in the EOW, against his wife and nephew, are closed. Operation Lotus of the BJP is out in the open… The BJP must answer how they are forming a government without getting the majority in the elections,” Atishi said.

However, BJP leader and candidate from the New Delhi constituency, Bansuri Swaraj said that AAP has an old habit of “shoot and scoot.”

“They keep leveling false allegations and think that there will be no consequences. ACMM Rouse Avenue summoned Atishi ji on June 29 in the defamation case. She will now have to give clarification on her 27 Jan 2024 tweet and allegations leveled at BJP during a press conference on 2nd April in which she said that she got an offer to join BJP,” she said.

She further said that AAP cannot make defamatory statements against BJP repeatedly and not be accountable. (ANI)

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India News Punjab

The big fight for Amritsar

The Amritsar seat is witnessing a four-cornered contest between the Congress, the ruling AAP, the BJP, and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidates…reports Asian Lite News

The BJP is aiming to break its 10-year jinx in one of India’s holiest cities, Amritsar in Punjab, in its third attempt through Taranjit Singh Sandhu.

This soft-spoken and patrician diplomat redefined India-US relations before entering politics.

Sandhu is the third high-profile figure from Amritsar, after late Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Union Minister Hardeep Puri, once a diplomat too, to try his luck from this Lok Sabha seat.

The Amritsar seat is witnessing a four-cornered contest between the Congress, the ruling AAP, the BJP, and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidates.

Incumbent MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla — who in a daring act snatched a smoke canister from an attacker and threw it out of the Parliament building in the December 2023 security breach — is aiming to score a hat-trick as the Congress nominee after two-consecutive wins.

As a BJP nominee, Amritsar, the constituency dominated by the Jat community, was represented by cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu from 2004 to 2014.

Sidhu is now in the Congress, through missing from the political landscape. After witnessing the embarrassing defeat of its high-profile candidate Arun Jaitley in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Hardeep Puri, a Sikh but non-Jat, was the second BJP leader to have lost the seat at the height of a ‘Modi wave’.

Puri had faced a tough straight fight, and lost by 99,626 votes to Aujla. “It is a fight for prestige this time, not only to break the winning streak from Amritsar seat from 2014 onwards but also to ensure victory with a record margin,” a local BJP leader told.

He believes the PM Modi factor is the main advantage for Sandhu, a turbaned Sikh, who is banking on urban Hindu voters too. The walled city of Amritsar, the seat of several Sikh organisations, including the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikh religion, and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), considered a mini-parliament of Sikh religious affairs, was founded in the late 16th century by Guru Ramdas, the fourth guru of the Sikhs.

While the AAP has fielded its Cabinet Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, the Akali Dal has reposed its faith in prominent Hindu face, Anil Joshi, who had twice represented the Amritsar (North) Assembly segment as a saffron party nominee and believes his achievements as a minister in the SAD-BJP government outshine Aujla’s achievements.

Joshi was expelled in July 2021 by the BJP for six years for criticising the state and central leadership for mishandling the farm agitation.

In his election campaigns, the BJP’s candidate Sandhu, who believes there is overwhelming support for PM Modi’s leadership for the progress and development of ‘Viksit Amritsar’, emphasises his vision for Amritsar with focus on infrastructure, employment and improvement in law enforcement, especially drug-prevention.

“We have immense potential to leverage our medical expertise and develop Amritsar as a hub for healthcare tourism,” he was quoted as saying.

While campaigning, Sandhu had lunch with a Dalit family to feel the pulse of the economically-backward. After enquiring about the problems relating to water, power and sewage system, he assured an elderly woman, the head of the family that he would come again after his victory and relish food the same way by sitting on the floor.

A whopping 32 per cent population of Scheduled Castes resides in Punjab, the highest among all the states.

Responding to the Abu Dhabi-based LuLu Group International’s announcement of starting a logistics and food processing centre in Amritsar, Sandhu, who believes PM Modi’s confidence fuels his determination, said the establishment of the centre will help boost the ‘Viksit Amritsar’ vision.

“I have worked with Prime Minister Modi for 10 years and our nation has flourished. His foreign policies and investments that came to India were aimed towards development. Now our children are getting jobs in India. We have to bring the same vision of ‘vikas’ (development) to Amritsar,” he told.

He said in the last 10 years the incumbent MP has not done anything substantive for the local industry, highlighting inefficiency to get central schemes for Amritsar.

“I am committed to addressing every issue they (constituents) have raised,” he added.

Sandhu, who believes in serving with integrity and transparency, has a plethora of ideas for making the holy city stand out in infrastructure development, generating employment and furthering a harmonious environment.

The former diplomat’s ‘Viksit Amritsar’ vision includes alternatives for agricultural development and sustainability and building Amritsar’s trade corridor with the potential of international outreach.

He also believes the Modi government has made significant strides in supporting and uplifting the Sikh community, fostering development and honouring their contributions to the nation.

While campaigning, the former Ambassador of India to the US visited Ajnala and Attari, where he highlighted his vision to bring in a special development package for revamping the border areas and work towards growth in education, agriculture, healthcare and infrastructure sectors.

Listening to the grievances of local traders who want to resume business with Pakistan through the Integrated Check Post (ICP), Sandhu said he would make efforts to revive trade through the Attari-Wagah border.

He also promised to bring in a special package for the holy city to beautify and clean it on the pattern of Indore. Even the sitting Congress MP Aujla and the SAD have demanded opening of trade via the ICP.

Sandhu, the second diplomat-turned-politician after Hardeep Puri, who had faced defeat from the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat in 2019 after Arun Jaitley’s debacle in 2014, has a rich family heritage.

Sandhu’s grandfather Teja Singh Samundri was among the founders of the SGPC and his father Bishan Singh Samundri was the founding Vice-Chancellor of Guru Nanak Dev University in Amritsar.

Two-time Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh had won this seat by a margin of more than a lakh votes by defeating Jaitley. At that time he was in the Congress and the SAD-BJP combine was in power in the state. He’s currently in the BJP.

Capt Singh quit as the Amritsar MP before the Assembly polls in 2017 and Aujla was fielded by the Congress for the bye-election, which he won by over 1.97 lakh votes, defeating the BJP and AAP candidates in a triangular fight.

Amritsar is a Sikh-majority constituency with more than 60 per cent voters. Since 1952, Amritsar has been represented 12 times by Congress MPs, while the BJP nominees have represented it four times, including three-consecutive wins by Navjot Sidhu.

There are nine Assembly segments in the Amritsar Lok Sabha constituency. Of them, eight are represented by AAP and one, Majitha, is represented by the Akali Dal. Punjab’s 13 Lok Sabha seats are slated to go to the polls in a single phase on June 1. Votes will be counted on June 4.

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India News Politics Punjab

Dalits with 32% population fail in Punjab power politics

In the 2002 Assembly polls, the party had got 5.69 per cent votes which decreased to 1.77 per cent in the 2022 polls, mainly due to the emergence of AAP…reports Asian Lite News

Does the Dalit (scheduled caste) vote bank in Punjab, being the home turf of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) founder Kanshi Ram and having a Dalit population of 32 per cent — the highest among states — play a politically empowered role in the electoral outcomes in the agricultural economy state?

Political pundits say “no” as, despite their numerical strength, they have failed to translate into political influence owing to the “leadership crisis”. Another reason is that they are not a homogeneous community that votes in unison.

But for other parties, as per the past trends, they normally play spoilsport.

The four mainstream parties — the Congress, the BJP, the Jat-dominated Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which snapped its electoral ties with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in the run-up to these polls, and the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) — are trying to woo the Dalits — a majority of them farm labourers or daily wage earners — by fielding candidates from their community for state’s 13 parliamentary seats.

Also, the caste-based BSP is contesting on all seats. As per past records, BSP’s vote percentage over the years has weakened substantially, both in assembly and Lok Sabha polls.

From 1998 onwards, the BSP has not won even a single Lok Sabha seat in Punjab. The BSP’s best performance in the Assembly polls was in 1992. At that time, the party had won nine seats in Punjab, but in the next elections in 1997, it was reduced to one seat.

In the 2002 Assembly polls, the party had got 5.69 per cent votes which decreased to 1.77 per cent in the 2022 polls, mainly due to the emergence of AAP.

Interestingly, a majority of Dalit legislators were elected from parties other than the BSP.

“After 1996, Dalits started shifting towards different parties, but before that the majority of their votes went to the Congress,” a Congress veteran leader said.

In the 2019 parliamentary polls, the BSP, which contested on three reserved seats, had a vote share of 3.5 per cent. It had got 1.4 lakh votes in Anandpur Sahib, 1.28 lakh votes in Hoshiarpur and more than 2 lakh votes in Jalandhar, the hub of the Dalits.

With its declining popularity, the BSP may play spoilsport for the other parties mainly on these seats in these polls, the Congress veteran added.

The BSP has fielded its state President Jabir Singh Garhi from Anandpur Sahib, the seat currently represented by Congress’ Manish Tewari, who has been fielded from the Chandigarh Lok Sabha seat.

BSP candidate Rakesh Soman from Hoshiarpur joined AAP in the run-up to the polls. Congress defector legislator Raj Kumar Chabbewal is the AAP candidate from this seat where the BSP holds considerable influence. Party supremo Kanshi Ram had won this seat in 1996 with the support of the Akali Dal.

Balwinder Kumar has been fielded by the BSP from Jalandhar, a Congress bastion with the party winning 10 out of the 16 Lok Sabha elections.

The Congress has fielded Charanjit Singh Channi, the state’s first Dalit chief minister, while AAP has nominated Akali Dal turncoat legislator Pawan Kumar Tinu. The BJP has poached the sitting AAP MP Sushil Kumar Rinku and the Akali Dal has reposed faith in former Congress MP Mohinder Singh Kaypee.

BJP’s Rinku is the most conspicuous party-hopper, having switched sides twice in a year. In Dalit politics, the state witnessed a new dynamic with the BJP’s announcement in 2022 that it would appoint a Scheduled Caste chief minister if it came to power.

A 2018 report by the ministry of social justice and empowerment says there are 39 sub-castes among Dalits in Punjab. Five sub-castes constitute more than 80 per cent of the Dalit population. Mazhabi Sikhs comprise the largest share of 30 per cent, followed by Ravidassias (24 per cent) and Ad-Dharmis (11 per cent).

Congress candidate Channi belongs to the Ravidassia community and is known for its proximity with Dera Sachakhand Ballan which has a strong presence in the Doaba region, the area between the Beas and the Satluj rivers often dubbed as the hub of Dalit politics.

The Doaba region comprises four districts — Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur and Nawanshahr that fall in two Lok Sabha constituencies — Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur.

The BJP has fielded incumbent MP Som Parkash’s wife Anita Som Parkash from Hoshiarpur, once a Congress bastion, while the Akali Dal has fielded Sohan Singh Thandal, and the BSP fielded Ranjit Kumar after its candidate Rakesh Soman left the party after two months of campaigning and joined AAP. Yamini Gomar, who had fought the 2014 elections on an AAP ticket, is the Congress nominee from Hoshiarpur.

Of the state’s 117 assembly seats, 34 (one-third) seats are reserved for the scheduled castes. Though Dalits, both among Sikhs and Hindus, are seen as the Congress’ traditional supporters, the Akalis bank on the Jat Sikhs (comprising 25 per cent of the population), while the present AAP government led by Bhagwant Mann has prominent Dalit leader Harpal Singh Cheema in his Cabinet.

In 1996, the BSP forged an alliance with the Akali Dal (Badal) in the parliamentary elections, and they won three of the four seats.

Punjab will vote in the seventh and last phase of the Lok Sabha elections on June 1.

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Films Lite Blogs Punjab

From Punjabi Cinema to Pan-Indian Acclaim

Vicky recalls that when he was offered the role, he had little idea it would catapult him straight into the big league, considering his next film is with Manoj Bajpai. He stresses that excellent teamwork was a major reason why everything including his acting was received well…writes Sukant Deepak

He recalls the time when a few years back, after earning Rs 5,000 in a theatre production, he took the next train out to Mumbai. Of course, the money did not last long and he was back in one month.

There were minor roles for Suvinder Vicky in Punjabi films — the uncle, the distant relative. He was waiting for his ‘chance’, and knew it would come one day, but doubts had also started creeping in.

Cut to the web series ‘Kohrra’ where his stellar performance made even Karan Johar remark: “I was blown away by Suvinder Vicky’s performance, he is and will be the revelation of 2023 across film and streaming … his silences can launch a million scripts.”

Vicky recalls that when he was offered the role, he had little idea it would catapult him straight into the big league, considering his next film is with Manoj Bajpai. He stresses that excellent teamwork was a major reason why everything including his acting was received well.

“All elements came together perfectly well, each person knew exactly what to do. The atmosphere on the set was relaxed. Yes, I prepared well, and spent much time studying the character,” the actor tells IANS during the recently concluded Cinevesture International Film Festival in Chandigarh.

The actor who had played a police officer’s role in back-to-back several web series admits that it was important to ensure to bring something new to every character.

“Honestly, I did not have much choice. These were the only roles that were offered to me. However, I put in a lot of effort to ascertain I played all of them with different shades. I prepared differently for each role and put in a lot to avoid any kind of repetition. Of course, credit should go to the directors too.”

While ‘Kohrra’ may have exposed him to a wider mainstream audience, Vicky had been doing exceptional work in Punjabi independent cinema.

In Gurvinder Singh’s ‘Chauthi Koot’ in which he played the protagonist Joginder, his haunted eyes said more than words. During breaks, Vicky would sit still for hours while the excellent National-award-winning cinematographer Satya Rai Nagpaul would set up his cameras.

“You know, Gurvinder wanted me to ‘un-act’ during the entire film, he insisted that I needed to speak through silence and my eyes, and not expressions or movements. Of course, it was frustrating sometimes. But I must admit, he has taught me a lot — the art of holding back, taking realism to an entirely different level and coming well-prepared to the set.

Vicky, who also played the lead in Ivan Ayr’s ‘Milestone’ which premiered during the 77th Venice International Film Festival in the year 2020, admits that before his foray into independent cinema, he was just another Punjabi actor.

“In many contemporary Punjabi films, no bound scripts are given to the actors. You are just told to enact a particular scene on the spot. There is no concept of rehearsals, and neither are actors expected to come prepared,” he laments.

While only a few independent filmmakers are working in Punjabi, and most of the films being churned out from the state are slapstick comedies, Vicky feels that we can be optimistic as a lot of new filmmakers are now emerging from the state.

“Let us hope that they strive for cinematic excellence and not just box-office returns,” concludes the actor who has signed several Hindi films and web series after ‘Kohrra’.

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India News Politics Punjab

Punjab: AAP’s First List of 8 Candidates Announced

Former MLA Gurpreet Singh has been given the ticket from Fatehgarh Sahib and the name of Karamjeet Anmol has been announced to contest from Faridkot….reports Asian Lite News

The Aam Aadmi Party announced its first list of eight candidates for the Lok Sabha elections from Punjab on Thursday.

The list includes five cabinet ministers- Gurmeet Singh Khudian from Bathinda, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal from Amritsar, Laljit Singh Bhullar from Khandur Sahib, Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer from Sangrur and Dr Balbir Singh from Patiala.

Apart from these, the sitting MP from Jalandhar, Sushil Kumar Rinku, has been named a candidate for the party whose convenor is Delhi Chief Minister Aravind Kejriwal

Former MLA Gurpreet Singh has been given the ticket from Fatehgarh Sahib and the name of Karamjeet Anmol has been announced to contest from Faridkot.

On February 27, the Aam Admi Party had announced its candidates for four Lok Sabha seats in Delhi and one from Haryana’s Kurukshetra constituency. It has fielded Kuldeep Kumar from the East Delhi constituency, whereas former Delhi Minister and senior AAP leader Somnath Bharti will contest from the New Delhi Lok Sabha seat.

The party has fielded Sahiram Pahalwan from the South Delhi seat, and Mahabal Mishra is set to contest from West Delhi. In Haryana, AAP has decided to field Sushil Gupta will contest from Kurukshetra.

There are 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab with four seats reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates. In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, the Congress-led UPA alliance clinched 8 seats, while the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) managed to secure four. The AAP, which was contesting for the first time in the state won one seat.

AAP is the first party in the state to have announced its candidates for the upcoming general elections. (ANI)

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India News Politics Punjab

SAD Denies Speculations of Alliance With BJP

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal, however, did not entirely rule out the possibility of a tie-up in future….reports Asian Lite News

On a day the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) named its candidates for 8 of the 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal denied speculations of reaching any alliance with the BJP but did not entirely rule out the possibility of a tie-up in future.

The Akalis were partners of the BJP earlier in the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre and the two even contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in the state together but failed to come up with the goods.

However, seeking to dispel rumours that the two parties could be costing up again ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and might even announce a seat-sharing deal in Punjab, the SAD chief said neither his party nor the BJP has any knowledge of an alliance in the state.

Claiming that such speculations were only confined to social media platforms, he said his party was keen to continue its tie-up with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in the state.

“Neither myself nor the BJP is aware of any alliance in Punjab. This (speculations of a tie-up) is only confined to social media. At this moment, we are keen on contesting all 13 Lok Sabha seats in the state. We have an alliance with the BSP…but I am not ruling out (the possibility of a tie-up with the BJP). Like-minded parties that want to save Punjab are most welcome to join us. We cannot and will not go with the Congress or the ‘broom’ (AAP),” the SAD chief, leaving the alliance door open.

The SAD snapped ties with the BJP and exited the NDA in September 2020 over the contentious farm laws of the Centre. The laws, however, were repealed later in the face of farmer protests.

On AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s statement on the Centre’s notification of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), claiming that law and order will collapse and crimes will go up if it was implemented, Badal said, “Kejriwal has an anti-Sikh and an anti-minority mindset. Shiromani Akali Dal had been saying from the beginning that Sikhs from Pakistan and Afghanistan have been facing a lot of strife in their homeland. Many of them crossed over into India over the past several years.”

The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), as articulated by the Centre, is a legal grant of permanent residentship to members of religious minorities in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, who fled alleged persecution in their homelands and crossed over into India.

“We have been saying that they (religious minorities currently settled in India as refugees) should be granted citizenship. We supported CAA in the Parliament too. I have known about Kejrwal’s anti-Punjab and anti-Sikh mindset from the beginning. However, for others, it is coming to light now,” the SAD chief said.

On the AAP’s prospects in Punjab in the Lok Sabha polls, the former deputy CM said, “I was following Kejriwal’s statement yesterday. He is very shrewd. Initially, when he sensed a fertile ground for the AAP in Punjab to bed itself in, he told people, ‘ Ek mauka do Kejriwal ko ‘ (Give Kejriwal a chance). When they won handsomely (in the 2022 Assembly polls), he took all the credit for it. However, now he has come to realise that this useless government and CM have done nothing for the state other than inflicting damage, he is saying that the party will build its campaign for the Lok Sabha elections around Bhagwant Mann. You have to understand this subtle shift in stance. This shows that he has accepted that his candidates will lose their deposits. The AAP will finish fourth in Punjab. Just wait and watch.” (ANI)

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