Jalandhar Parliamentary Constituency – Election 2024
-RAMESH CHANDER
(THE ASIAN INDEPENDENT)- Since 1952, the first elections of independent India, Jalandhar Parliamentary Constituency had been an important and high-voltage seat. With Amar Nath as a Congress Party MP in 1952, Congress Party retained its hold till 1970s with eminent politicians like Swaran Singh, Maj. General Rajinder Singh Sparrow, Yash, Iqbal Singh Dhillon, Balbir Singh, Rana
Gurmeet Singh, Umrao Singh, Mohinder Singh Kaypee, Chaudhary Santokh Singh, Sushil Rinku and stalwarts like Inder Kumar Gujral, Darbara Singh representing diverse political outfits. Political bigwigs of the state like Harkishan Singh Surjit, Varinder, Parkash Singh, Charanjit Singh Atwal, Inder Iqbal Singh Atwal, Pawan Tinu, Balwinder Kumar, Lahori Ram Balley, Sukhwinder Sukhi among others have been in the fray in various elections. It gave PM Indar Kumar Gujral and SEAM Sardar Swaran Singh, the top most positions in the Indian warrant of precedence. The constituency was made reserved in 2009.
Jalandhar is one of the Lok Sabha constituencies in Punjab having 13 parliamentary seats. The Jalandhar seat has total votes of 16.42 lakh (8.54 male and 7.88 female) and comprises 9 Assembly segments – Phillaur, Nakodar, Shahkot, Kartarpur, Jalandhar (west), Jalandhar (central), Jalandhar (north,) Jalandhar Cantt., Adampur. Traditionally, Congress Party has had the larger share in the cake followed by changed scenario with SAD and BJP registering their presence from mid-1980s. After the emergence of AAP beginning 2017, the kitty got divided between AAP, SAD and Congress Party and in 2022 assembly elections AAP emerged as the major player with 5 followed by Congress Party with 4 seats as MLAs. The Election 2024 for the Lok Sabha has taken a new turn in the prevailing fluid political situation. The Aya Ram Gya Ram phenomena has captured the entire exercise, unfortunately, sending a wrong message; bereft of political polarization on the basis of agenda and ideology, a bane of democracy. In the current election which is to go for vote on June 1 in last of 7 phase elections, the turn-coats have sullied the political waters in the constituency – Congress Party nominee; former CM Charanjit Channi is considered to be an outsider (not belonging to Jalandhar), Sitting MP Sushil Rinku who left Congress in the 2023 bye-election and won as an AAP candidate again shifted sides and joined BJP to be the nominee of BJP, A SAD big-wig, Pawan Tinu switched to AAP and grabbed its nomination, Yet another Congress stalwart; Mohinder Singh Kaypee joined the band-wagon of SAD. BSP nominee; Balwinder Kumar is the only candidate with his original mark as a flag bearer of Babu Kanshi Ram and Mayawati. The political situation in the constituency is really confusing and fluid adding to the difficulties of the voters and making mockery of the entire system.
With this background, I come to some of mine own observations on the elections and the personalities in the fray not as a political analyst but as a humble stake holder and a voter in the constituency. It is not the first time for me to do so as I have been writing on such occasions for the last 10 years or so. I have had occasions and opportunities to meet and interact with almost all nominees of mainstream parties both on social and political milieu. I will limit my comments to five leading candidates – with malice towards none or all to put it lightly.
Charanjit Singh Channi of Congress Party – Channi Sahib is a big-wig of his party but have a heavy baggage of the past. The dalit communities were happy and welcomed him when he was made the first CM of Punjab some two years ago. He could not deliver as expected, if one goes by the video interview of one of the senior most bureaucrats of his time, Tilak Sarangal, now retired. Sarangal Sahib has given Channi Sahib’s lopsided treatment to the issues of scholarships to SC students, 
Reservations in promotions of SCs, Grants announced to DeraSchkhand Ballan among others. The video interview was on the facebook and may also be available on other social media organs. In this election, he got the tag of an ‘outsider’ from Khandur Sahib. Though educated yet, it seems, he is surrounded a coterie of ‘chamchas’ to put it in Babu Kanshi Ram’s phraseology. When Channi Sahib became CM, I ventured to write to him on many subjects and issues of concern and interest to the community formally and also through the social media. I could not get any response. As apolitical man, I once again picked up the threads on coming to know that he has come to Jalandhar and was staying near my native place, Bootan Mandi. I wished to meet him as a gesture of courtesy and sent him a message on WhatsApp. He responded and said, ‘You are welcome. We will meet soon”. I kept him posted with my activities concerning the community and the society at large. But I could not listen from him as of today, May 25. On intimation from the management of Bootan Mandi Guru Ravidass Dham, I went there to welcome Channi Sahib when he came there to pay obeisance on May 22. Dham management gave me a chance to introduce myself and welcome Channi Sahib. But that was not to be as Channi Sahib abruptly decided to get up and leave. Nevertheless, I presented him two of my recently released books; Some Random Thoughts on Babasaheb Ambedkar and His Legacy and Bootan Mandi: Nerve Centre of Dalit Chetna. Cutting the story short, I have a distinct feeling that Charanjit Singh Channi is too obsessed with himself. Nevertheless, I respect him and am open to engage him in matters of interest and concern to the society in all good faith. I wish Channi Sahib all the best.
Sushil Rinku of BJP – Sushil Rinku is one of our family friends of long standing. We often meet at social and community functions without touching political issues. We know each other well, I understand. These friendly bonds amply reflect standing 
of my brothers Krishan and Paramjit in community circles. I joined them on my return and retirement from diplomatic career and got introduced friends like Sushil Rinku among others. Sushil is always reverential and respectful to me. He always tend to recognize my presence in all social and community events referring to me as ’Uncle ji or Ambassador Sahib’. Even when he was in Congress party or later in AAP, he invariably referred to my proposal on International Day of Equality in his public discourse and encouraged me. He was the Chief Guest at the release of my first book – The Bits and Pieces: Reminiscences and Reflections of a Novice in 2019 at the 50th anniversary of our marriage. Again just recently in November, 2023, he released my second book – Some Random Thoughts on Babasaheb Ambedkar and His Legacy and took the trouble of coming to our humble home for the honours. At that time, I shared with him at the audience that Sushil would soon be releasing my next book on Bootan Mandi – Bootan Mandi: Nerve Centre of Dalit Chetna scheduled to be released in February, 2024 at the Guru Ravidass Gurpurab. But that was not to be as it got delayed on account of untimely and sudden passing away of my wife, Vidya. The book has since been released on April 28 but I did not invite Sushil because of election constraints. In between, Sushil changed track and joined BJP; wrong or right, I would refrain from commenting on his decision. Last week, on his campaign trail, he came to our locality and dutifully came to our home to take our blessings in new Avtar in BJP. With a view to make him at ease, I said in a lighter vein that don’t worry ‘you have become a Musalman now and I was an old one’ referring to my personal equation with RSS leadership with regard to their ‘Samrasta’ plank. He smiled which I could see in his thick mustache. Sushil is an energetic youngman and a politician of his own standing. I wish him all the best.
Pawan Tinu of AAP – Pawan Tinu is an old friend and associates of my brothers. I met him on social occasions on my 
home leaves while in service as a protégé of Babu Kanshi Ram who later came under the umbrella of SAD to achieve his political ambitions. He is an educated young politician with grass-root connections. I always found him reverential and respectful. On my return to Jalandhar, if I recall correctly, I supported Pawan by writing a blog as a personal and friendly choice in one of his elections from Adampur. Politicians are prone to have strange bed-fellows. Let us hope Pawan justifies his decision to change horses mid-stream. Again, I wish him all the best.
Mohinder Singh Kaypee of SAD – Mohinder Singh Kaypee remained a traditional (Taksali) Congressman following the 
footsteps of his father, Darshan Singh Kaypee, a down to earth politician and an astute public figure. He occupied coveted positions in the Congress Party and the polity as a Sauvé politician. I happened to know Kaypee junior’s father a little bit more and recall one of my longish conversations with him along with Chaudhary Jagjit Singh and Yogendra Makwana on Babu Kanshi Ram at the house of my fellow BootanMandia, Surinder Mahey sometime in 1986-87. On my retirement, I came to know Mohinder Singh and met often on social functions in and around Jalandhar. I found him a gentleman politician but without the earthy sense of Public Relations (PR) like his father. Political frustrations may lead one to unknown paths. Let us see as to how Mohinder Singh Kaypee copes with the situation. I take this opportunity to wish him all the best.
Balwinder Kumar of BSP – I don’t know Balwinder personally and I have never met him. If I recall correctly, some years 
before, he tersely rather uncouthly commented on one of my Facebook posts on Mahatma Gandhi. I could immediately understand the depth and mindset of the man. Balwinder Singh. I invited him to speak and discuss the matter with an open mind. There was no response. Later I came to know Balwinder was a sort of journalist and was decorated with many more academic degrees. He could show his political mettle at the hustings and got more than two lakh votes in the last Lok Sabha elections when BSP was in alliance with SAD. Just in the course of my discourse with one of the BSP insiders in Jalandhar recently, I was told that Balwinder was haughty man (Dhaon Ch Keela) with misplaced self-centered approach My interlocutor also told me that they feared that he might come to some understanding with one of the rich candidates and becomes a dummy as a spoiler on vested and selfish considerations. I don’t know but, it seems, he may succumb to worldly pressure in the given situation. . Nevertheless, I wish him all the best in the days to come.
All said and done, let me come to the political prognosis with regard to the Jalandhar Parliamentary seat:-
– All the parties and their nominee have made the entire exercise meaningless; bereft of any agenda, programme and issues concerning the voters and the society at large. It is a clash of personalities and interests rather than ideologies.
– People are confused particularly the dalit voters; major stake holders in this high profile seat. Dalit votes would get divided as all the major candidates belong to Ravidassia or Ad-dharmi segments of the community. It is suits the right wing upper-caste outfits as polarization of upper caste votes would come handy in deciding the outcome.
– If Balwinder Kumar of BSP could withstand the money and muscle factor, he could be a dark horse in the race subject to the presumption that BSP cadres remain intact and united.
– The winning or losing margins will not be big. This churning exercise will end in new alignments; all the four bigwigs now representing Congress Party, SAD, AAP and BJP would park themselves afresh in the new emerging scenario.
As I said, this election is a clash of personalities alone and there is hardly any agenda. Here I mention three issues, emotional and psychological, which may tend to make a definite dent in the psyche of Raviassia/Ambedkarite voters. The candidates and their parties may encash them by making their support public in this regard but the time is of essence:-
- i)April 14, birthday of Babasaheb Ambedkar, as International Day of Equality. My latest blog on the subject gives all the necessary details: https://diplomatictitbits.blogspot.com/2024/05/an-open-letter-to-candidates-in-lok.html
- ii)Guru Ravidass Mandir at Tuglakabad in Delhi. My blog on the subject would give some information on the subject: https://diplomatictitbits.blogspot.com/2019/08/my-wishful-thinking-guru-ravidass.html
iii) Ad-dharam Mandal Headquarters at Mohala Kishanpura in Jalandhar to be declared a heritage building of the community. Details may accessed from my blog on the subject: https://diplomatictitbits.blogspot.com/2024/01/call-to-redeem-history-and-glory-of-ad.html
I was considering to advise the voters of the constituency to avail of the option of NOTA on the EVM in view of the unbecoming conduct (Aya Ram Gya Ram) of candidates from one side to other without any logic but desisted from doing so on the consideration that I am a humble Ambedkarite and should not be seen as a nay-sayer in the festival of democracy. With this I again wish all the candidates in the fray all the very best and conclude this longish piece with a poetic delight of Allma Iqbal:
Hawaida Aaj Apne Zakhm-e-Pinhan Kar Ke Chorun Ga
Lahoo Ro Ro Ke Mehfil Ko Gulistan Kar Ke Chorun Ga
I will surely exhibit all my hidden wounds today
I will surely change assembly to a garden with blood‐mixed tears
Parona Aik Hi Tasbeeh Mein In Bikhare Danon Ko
Jo Muskhil Hai, To Iss Mushkil Ki Asan Kar Ke Chorun Ga
If stringing these scattered pearls in a single rosary
Is difficult, I will surely make this difficult task easy
