School Principle Amrit Pal Kaur said that Ugoke has studied in the same school and brought many laurels…reports Asian Lite News
The mother of Aam Admi Party MLA Labh Singh Ugoke, Baldev Kaur, on Saturday continued working as a sweeper in the government school, even after her son won the 2022 Assembly elections in Punjab.
Ugoke, who defeated the outgoing Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi from the Bhadaur seat with a margin of 37,550 votes, used to work in a mobile repairing shop.
“We have always worked hard to earn money. Irrespective of my son’s position, I will continue to perform my duty in the school,” Ms said.
Joyed by the victory of her son as an AAP candidate whose party symbol is a broom, Kaur said ‘Jhadu’ is an important part of my life.
“Even though he contested against the Chief Minister of the state, we were always confident that my son would win,” she added.
School Principle Amrit Pal Kaur said that Ugoke has studied in the same school and brought many laurels.
“Labh Singh’s mother has been working as a sweeper in this school for a long time now. He has also studied in this school. He has brought many laurels to his village and school. Kaur says she wants to continue working in the school,” said Amrit Pal Kaur.
Singh’s father, Darshan Singh, who used to work as a labourer, said that the family will live as earlier. He wants his son to focus on the welfare of the people instead of the family.
“People of the village elected him. We want him to be working for the welfare of the people. We will continue to live the way we used to earlier,” said Darshan Singh.
Ugoke joined the AAP in 2013 and rose in the ranks of the party quickly. He had sought AAP’s ticket from Bhadaur seat in 2017 too but the party had then decided otherwise.
Villagers were joyed by his victory, saying that they still can’t believe that Ugoke they knew for so long has become an MLA now.
“For day and night, he used to work for the party. We never thought that he would get the ticket from the party and would become an MLA. We are happy for him,” said one of the villagers.
The AAP bagged a landslide victory in the Punjab polls, winning 92 Assembly seats, pushing most of its rivals to the margins. Congress won 18 seats in the 117-member Assembly.
She also pointed out that it would have been better and more befitting if Channi had taken the blessings of Guru Ravidas-ji after being appointed the chief ministerial candidate of the Congress party…reports Asian Lite News
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) President Mayawati on Tuesday described the Congress party’s decision to declare incumbent Charanjit Singh Channi as its chief ministerial face in Punjab as a desperate attempt to revive its sinking fortunes in the state.
The BSP supremo, who addressed a large gathering here along with Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal, in Nawanshahr said: “The Congress party only remembers Dalits at the time of elections. Once the elections are over they will sideline Charanjit Channi who is even now being remote controlled from Delhi.”
She also asked Channi to understand why he had been promoted in the party, saying the Congress party had a past history of using the Dalit community during elections.
She also pointed out that it would have been better and more befitting if Channi had taken the blessings of Guru Ravidas-ji after being appointed the chief ministerial candidate of the Congress party.
“I appeal to the Ravidas samaj to make Channi realise the value of Guru Ravidas-ji”, Mayawati added in her first election rally ahead of polling for 117 seats of the Assembly on February 20.
The BSP president, while expressing confidence that the SAD-BSP alliance would sweep the polls, said: “We all have to work unitedly to install Sukhbir Badal as the next chief minister of the state.”
She said she was confident that with Badal as the next chief minister special schemes would be launched to bring in all-round improvement in the life of the weaker sections of society.
In her message on the occasion, Mayawati said while the Congress party was dying a natural death across the country and its days were numbered in Punjab said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was also on its way out. “People realise the BJP has a corporate mindset and will make it meet the same fate as the Congress party.”
Speaking about Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Mayawati said people should see the conditions in Delhi for themselves before thinking of reposing faith in AAP in Punjab.
Speaking on the occasion, SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal stated that after Mayawati’s visit to Punjab, the SAD-BSP tsunami was set to sweep the state.
He said the Punjabis felt cheated by the Congress party which had done nothing and wasted five years by scrapping or curtailing all social welfare benefits given to Punjabis by Parkash Singh Badal, be it scrapping blue cards or curtailing old-age pension and shagun scheme.
He said similarly Punjabis could not trust AAP which had an anti-Punjab agenda.
He said AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal did not have any attachment with Punjab.
“Kejriwal has taken an anti-Punjab stance in the Supreme Court on key issues and even demanded transfer of Punjab’s river waters to Haryana and Delhi, closure of its thermal plants and registration of criminal cases against farmers who were forced to burn their paddy stubble.”
Badal also announced that all blue cards which had been deleted by the Congress government would be restored within one month of formation of the SAD-BSP government.
He also announced that Rs 2,000 per month would be given to the woman head of below poverty line families, all consumers would be given 400 units of power free of cost, Rs 10 lakh medical insurance cover would be given to all and that students will be eligible to a Rs 10 lakh loan for higher studies, besides 33 per cent reservation in technical institutions (government school students).
He also announced that all those who did not have a home would be given a five marla plot of land and that a 500 bed medical college would be established in every district of the state.
Getting emotional on the announcement of his name, Channi said that he has always been honest, never took a penny from anyone, and will continue to work honestly…reports Asian Lite News
Just two weeks ahead of Assembly polls in the Congress-ruled Punjab, party leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday ended months of suspense by announcing incumbent Charanjit Singh Channi as the party’s Chief Ministerial face for the polls.
Accepting the decision, state party chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, who was in the race, hugged Channi on the stage as Gandhi announced his name after over 45 minutes of his speech, televised across the 117 Assembly seats.
Political observers believe the decision of the Congress to go to the polls in the state, which is witnessing a five-cornered contest, under the leadership of three-time legislator Channi, the state’s first Dalit Chief Minister, is to woo the Dalit Sikh votes that constitutes 32 per cent Scheduled Caste population in the state, the country’s largest.
“The people of Punjab have said, not me, the thought is theirs, not mine, that they want a person from a poor household as the CM. We want someone who understands poverty, hunger, and fears of the poor. Punjab’s CM candidate is Charanjit Singh Channi Ji,” said Gandhi during his address at the ‘Aawaz Punjab Di’ virtual rally.
He praised Channi for his humble background.
Lashing out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Gandhi said “he is not the PM but a king. Have you seen him helping anyone on the roadside”.
Getting emotional on the announcement of his name, Channi said that he has always been honest, never took a penny from anyone, and will continue to work honestly.
“This is a big battle which I can’t fight alone and I don’t have the money, courage to fight it,” he said, adding, “The people of Punjab will fight this battle.”
Channi became the CM after the unceremonious exit of Amarinder Singh over allegations of being hand-in-glove with the Akalis for not fulfilling the 2017 prominent poll promises — acting with an iron fist against the drug mafia and justice for the sacrilege of 2015 that led to protests and the deaths of two persons in the subsequent police firing.
The Congress announcement of the CM’s face came after the AAP declared comedian-turned-politician Bhagwant Mann as its Chief Ministerial candidate on January 18.
Before the formal announcement by Gandhi, Sidhu said, “I have accepted Rahul Gandhi’s decision…If I am given decision-making power, I will finish the mafia, improve people’s lives. If not given power, I will walk with a smile with whomever you make the CM.”
Responding to the Congress announcement, AAP Punjab co-incharge Raghav Chadha tweeted, “It is indeed sad that out of 3 crore Punjabis, the Congress party chose a person who is accused of illegal sand mining and transfer posting scam as their CM candidate.”
Political observers said that it was a tough task for the party high command to choose Channi, a Dalit Sikh, over Sidhu, a Jat Sikh, in a state with a population caste mix of roughly 32 per cent Dalits, 30 per cent Jat Sikhs and 40 per cent the rest.
“Most of the cabinet ministers and top leaders stood behind Channi owing to his soft approach, easy accessibility and the most important, being the biggest Dalit face. If the high command projected Sidhu as the chief minister’s face, it could upset the party’s Dalit vote bank,” a senior Congress leader said, requesting anonymity.
“After building an image of transferring power from the elite (Capt Amarinder Singh) to the poor, the party can’t ignore Channi’s claim at this stage,” the Congress leader added.
In a bid to woo Dalit voters, Channi last month spent a night at Dera Sachkhand Ballan, a prominent Ravidassia community that has much influence in the Doaba region comprising Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Nawanshahr and Kapurthala districts.
In his brief helm of 111 days, Channi built an image of the common man’s Chief Minister by extensively touring the state, occasionally performing ‘bhangra’ on the beats of a ‘dhol’ at public functions, favouring tea at roadside eateries while narrating couplets to the masses, besides accepting ‘siropas’ (religious robes) enroute by stopping his cavalcade.
The key opponents in the state — the AAP, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) combine and the BJP in alliance with Amarinder Singh’s new party Punjab Lok Congress and the Samyukt Samaj Morcha, the fledging coalition of farm unions — are making an issue out of the Congress CM’s face.
Now the prominent faces for the parties are Channi (Congress), 58; Mann (AAP), 48; Sukhbir Singh Badal (SAD), 59; Amarinder Singh (BJP-led alliance), 80; and Balbir Singh Rajewal (Samyukt Samaj Morcha), 78.
11L people viewed Rahul’s virtual rally
A virtual rally in Punjab titled “Aawaz Punjab Di” addressed by former Congress President Rahul Gandhi from Ludhiana has broken all records after its live telecast was viewed by 11 lakh people on social media, according to the party.
The virtual rally was held on Sunday. Congress Social Media Head, Rohan Gupta said, “The unique thing about the rally was the large audience of more than 90,000 people, who watched the rally live, simultaneously at the same time on the Facebook page of Rahul Gandhi. With the current views of 8.8 lakh, 42,000 comments, 1.1 million reach and 6000 shares, making it one of the most successful virtual rallies.”
पंजाब की जनता ने कांग्रेस पार्टी के CM चेहरे के रूप में चरणजीत सिंह चन्नी जी को चुना है।
The rally was telecast on virtual mediums or social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube along with live LED screens across all districts of Punjab.
The party claimed 90,000 live views on Facebook Live are unprecedented for any political leader in India, showing the massive impact and curiosity about the rally.
A day earlier Channi said he has spoken to Sidhu and invited him to have a chat and sort out differences, if any…reports Asian Lite News.
The crisis in the Punjab Congress between Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and state chief Navjot Singh Sidhu seems to be continuing despite their first face-to-face meeting on Thursday since the latter resigned from the post.
The meeting lasted for over two hours and the issues raised by Sidhu will be put before the Cabinet on October 4, sources in the party said.
After the meeting at Punjab Bhavan, where AICC observer Harish Chaudhary was also present, both Channi and Sidhu left the meeting venue without talking to the media.
After meeting the Chief Minister, Sidhu held a closed-door meeting with his close confidantes, legislators Pargat Singh, Raj Kumar Verka, and Kuljit Nagra.
A day earlier Channi said he has spoken to Sidhu and invited him to have a chat and sort out differences, if any.
“Whoever is party President is head of the family. I had called him and told him that the party is supreme. I have spoken to him on phone and told him to let’s sit, talk it out and resolve the issue,” he had told the media here.
Days after the ‘deadlock’ between Channi and Sidhu over the appointments of the Director General of Police and Advocate General, besides re-induction of a ‘tainted’ legislator in the Cabinet, Sidhu, ahead of the meeting, indicated that he was ready to end the impasse.
He especially came from his hometown Patiala to meet Channi in Chandigarh.
Ahead of the meeting, Sidhu tweeted: “Chief Minister has invited me for talks will reciprocate by reaching Punjab Bhawan, Chandigarh at 3:00 PM today, he is welcome for any discussions !”
A day after his resignation as the Congress chief, Sidhu on September 29 said he will fight for truth till his last breath as the fight is for principles that he won’t compromise with.
“I will fight for truth until my last breath,” Sidhu had said in a video message posted on his Twitter handle.
“It is not a personal battle but a fight for principles. I won’t compromise on principles,” Sidhu had said categorically.
Without mincing words, he had said he would not accept tainted ministers being brought back into the newly constituted state cabinet led by Channi.
In the video message in Punjabi, the cricketer-turned-politician, who said his only religion is to make people’s lives better, had said he had fought for justice and for Punjab’s agenda.
Unhappy over the expansion, allocation of portfolios and appointments on crucial posts, including the Advocate General, Sidhu on September 28 resigned from his post after remaining at the helm for 71 days.
As his decision pushed the state Congress into deeper crisis, Sidhu, however, maintained that he would not be leaving the party.
