Raghbir Singh Brar
Faridkot
The last assembly elections in 2022 were very simple to be contested, because the rooky party AAP was not tested and the SAD and Congress, both had failed to deliver whatever they had promised to the Punjabis.
Simply put,it was not a win of the AAP, actually a self proclaimed defeat of the congress and the SAD.
The the congress chief minister nominee captain Amarinder Singh had sworn in by Gutka Sahib to bring justice to the sacrilege victims and eliminate Chitta.
The alleged sacrilege had taken place when the SAD-BJP alliance was ruling Punjab and two peaceful protesters had been killed in the police firing in Behbal Kalan village.
But little had been done by both the governments. The issues of the drug and sacrilege lingered on and new entrant AAP tried its best to encash the sacrilege issue by joining the former IG,Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, painting him its poster boy.
But now, since Punjab has also tested the AAP and new entry of the BJP, the next Punjab assembly elections are almost a four corner contest, if the SAD-BJP do not form an alliance.
But what is apparent is that divisive politics seems to be playing . Polarization.
Few days ago, I was flipping through the pages of National daily when my interest grew into a front page news story which was initself telling enough to someone who has keen interest in journalism that there was something going on to be allegedly manipulated..
The news story, otherwise had not been given that space, was about an alleged attack by the gangsters associated with the Bambiha gang warning on social media to drive away the migrants from UP and Bihar.
No farmer,factory or grain market would afford to drive away the migrant labour while there is already an acute shortage of Punjabi labour.
So apparently,there is some political party that may benefit from this attack that may have happened by the gangsters.
But actually,this is not the ideology of the gansters too.
On February 1, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Dera Sachkhand Ballan, located in Doaba which has a stronghold of the backward classes,followers of the Dera.
Former Punjab chief minister Charanjeet Singh channi also alleged that the state has a dalit share of about 30 to 35 per cent but it is not getting a matched representation,though he was soon snubbed by the high command.
Then a dera head met undertrail former minister Bikram Singh Majithia,who got bail from the apex court and allegedly said that he was his friend terming the so-called DA and drug cases allegedly baseless.
The latest summons by the ED to former Punjab Chief minister and his son are another example of unexpected situation.The former Punjab CM is now in BJP fold and the member of its national body.
But allegedly at whose behest, the ED summoned him and his son and why the officer in question was transferred later on.
It is not possible that the ED might have summoned them without the knowledge of its higher ups or political masters, but why the ED officer was transferred from Jalandhar to a far away place as per the media reports.Might be,there is some pressure tactics to someone his place.
Another Dera head, already serving jail terms, has been given parole many times before and that dera claims strong hold in Malwa.
Of late, some senior politicians have also joined BJP,who were once in Congress but switching sides,can not be simply put that they are seeking some career in the BJP,there could be some illegal wrongdoings by them due to which they may have to switch sides.