Punjab Assembly Elections: It could be advantage AAP in Captain-Badal face-off

CHANDIGARH: For both Captain Amarinder, 75 and senior Badal, 89, 2017 contest for Assembly elections would be their last electoral battles. But no one imagined, the beginning of the end to their political rivalry, would see them pitched against each other. For sure the credit, for taking on the Badal’s in their home turf has added momentum to the Congress cadre and the high octane contest would be a do or die battle for both the political heavyweights. On March 11, the day of the counting for the Assembly polls, Captain would turn 76.

In the clash of titans, Aam Admi Party can be the ultimate gainer as both Shiromani Akali Dal and Congress patriarch get ready for a face off at Lambi -traditionally an Akali constituency. The high stake battle would confine Akali Supremo Parkash Singh Badal and Captain Amarinder Singh to this constituency, giving AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, who has been camping in Punjab for over a month, enough time for small rallies and door to door meets across the hinterlands. Whereas Congress workers are enthused at the development, Akalis also remain unfazed, as they will have junior Badal- Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal campaigning across the state. But senior Badal known for his Sangat Darshans (Public gatherings at villages) , more like Mohalla meets of AAP, absence would be conspicuous in the poll scene.

Lambi won’t be cakewalk anymore, SAD knows it well and is redrawing its strategy carefully.

Badal’s political career started in 1947 when he was elected Sarpanch of the Badal village and later Lambi Block Samiti chairman before rising into Punjab politics.

In 1957, he entered Punjab Vidhan Sabha for the first time, and was re-elected in 1969. He was Leader of the Opposition in 1972, 1980 and 2002.

Elected in Vidhan Sabha for a total of 10 times, Badal has served five terms as Punjab Chief Minister — the first time in 1970 when he became the youngest chief minister of an Indian State.

Captain Amarinder 14 years younger to Parkash Singh Badal is known to take on his rivals head on. Former MP from Amritsar won by a massive margin of more than One lakh against Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, despite the saffron wave gripping the country in 2014 Parliamentary elections. Though, he was reluctant to contest from Amritsar.But as Congress central leadership pushed, Captain lived up to it.

On Sunday, Captain Amarinder launched campaign with an eye on Lambi, from Mehraj in Rampur Phula with a scathing all-out attack against the Badals, vowing to hang them from their heads along with all others guilty of religious sacrilege and drug mafia, even as he dismissed cowardly Arvind Kejriwal as a `small and sneaky man’ who did not have the guts to fight him on the electoral battleground.

Captain Amarinder was addressing a massive rally here after taking the blessings from the 6th Guru Badshah at the Mehraj gurdwara in Rampura Phul, with which he said he had close emotional ties since his family had settled here in 1305 when they first migrated to Punjab from Jaisalmer.

“Punjab does not tolerate cowards like the AAP leader, said Captain Amarinder, adding that if left to AAP or the Akalis, Punjab will never be able to restore its lost pride and glory.

But look who is amused at Congress decision of fielding captain from Lambi.

The 89 year old grand man of Indian politics, Parkash Singh Badal, while taking a dig at Captain,says, "This is a smart ploy of Rahul Gandhi to get rid of the Captain Amarinder Singh by pushing him into Lambi as everyone knows Rahul does n't like him."

Mr Badal however added that he knew that Captain would try "to play to the gallery with false bravado which everyone in Punjab is familiar with. But we are fine with his antics."

“In Punjab, we are seeing opponents of Akali Dal trying to settle their intra-party rivalries by pushing their rivals into Akali strongholds. Earlier, We saw how Arvind Kejriwal smartly maneuvered Bhagwant Mann and other major AAP leaders into Akali strong-holds. Rahul seems to have followed that pattern with Captain. Rahul has done to Captain what Captain used to do to his junior rivals in then party in the past."

AAP has pitched Jarnail Singh from Lambi. Singh hit headlines in April 2009, after he hurled a shoe at former Home Minister P. Chidambaram during a press conference, in protest against his remarks on the clean chit to Congress leaders in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case.