With barely six months to go, Punjab has started bracing for a fierce Vidhan Sabha electoral battle that will not only be multi-cornered but also a huge test for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to strike roots across the State.
The BJP has been working assiduously at the grassroots level to catch the imagination of the border State, which has been riven with conflicting strands due to decade-long militancy and disruptive designs of the neighbouring country that have not allowed Punjab to regain its long-lost glory.
After BJP National General Secretary BL Santosh made a categorical public announcement that the BJP would contest the forthcoming Assembly election on its own, without any alliance, the challenge for the party is clear-cut.
The BJP’s silent contribution to communal harmony in the State, even during the turbulent days of militancy, rings resoundingly. And it remains its biggest asset by not letting any communal conflict disturb the age-old social fabric of harmony and respect.
PM’s Visionary Steps
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken a series of initiatives to win the confidence of Punjabis, including opening up of the Kartarpur corridor, declaring “Bal Diwas” for the sacrifice of Guru Gobind Singh ji’s sons, and making respectful concessions for Golden Temple services. All such initiatives have opened new vistas for the BJP, which has been riding on the shoulders of the Shiromani Akali Dal all these years.
On the ground, the BJP has been trying to woo the Jat Sikhs who got annoyed with the party in the wake of the controversial farmers’ bills. The appointment of Kewal Singh Dhillon as Punjab BJP president, who has been in the Congress for three decades, suggests the party high command is trying to consolidate the Sikh vote again. The BJP has also been embracing leaders from other political parties like AAP and the Akali Dal to expand its ground in the state. Will it help the BJP to do a West Bengal in Punjab is still a moot question.
The party, which has two seats in the current 117-member Vidhan Sabha, has an opportunity to spread its wings in Punjab given the state of other political parties, including the Congress, AAP and the Akali Dal.
The faction-ridden Congress has been unable to find its moorings. The party, which could have been in the reckoning to regain power in the State, is caught in an acrimonious infighting that is fast eating into its vitals
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is confronting massive anti-incumbency in the State after failing to deliver on the economy or any other front. There has been a complete collapse of the economy during its rule of four and a half years, whereas mafias of drugs, mining and gangsters have had a field day to push the state to the brink. Punjab has become one of the most indebted states; the law and order machinery has crumbled, injecting a worrying sense of insecurity among the people. Repeated grenade attacks on police stations and extortion calls to the business community have gripped the state with uncanny fear.
The fact that the entire State is being run by the Delhi-based Kejriwal-Sisodia duo, who could never relate to the Punjabi ethos, has made people look askance. The Bhagwant Mann Government’s efforts to contain this rapid erosion will be closely watched in the days to come.
Infighting Within the Opposition
The faction-ridden Congress has been unable to find its moorings. The party, which could have been in the reckoning to regain power in the State, is caught in an acrimonious infighting that is fast eating into its vitals. As the second-largest party in the Vidhan Sabha with 18 seats in the present House, the Congress had a fair chance to improve its tally. But the despondency gripping the party ranks amid infighting among top leaders means Congress voters may opt for the BJP instead. That could be a windfall for the BJP in the State.
The group led by former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi has upped the ante against Punjab PCC president Raja Singh Warring, while the PCC’s central observer, Bhupesh Baghel, has been unable to build bridges among the warring leaders of the State Congress, pushing it to the brink.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which formed a formidable alternative to the Congress for more than five decades, is in complete shambles. After the passing of Parkash Singh Badal, a stalwart who kept the party at the forefront of state politics, the Akali Dal stands completely fragmented. His son, Sukhbir Badal, has failed to hold his flock together amid a series of charges of sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib during his tenure as Home Minister in the Badal Government. The party with practically one MLA in its pocket, and just one member in the Lok Sabha, both coming from the in-laws’ family of Sukhbir Badal, hardly evokes any hope and positivity among the Punjabis. In fact, the Akali Dal faces its first-ever challenge to avoid extinction because of its unpopularity in the state. What hope it offers Sikhs in particular is a big challenge for it.
The recent visits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have injected a new enthusiasm for nation-building and sadbhav which was severely rocked during the militancy days. Many Punjabis are hoping for a new sunrise in the State, despite all the superficial upheavals that come in the form of films or otherwise.
