Punjab polls: Denied ticket from Majitha, Cong Amritsar rural chief joins BJP
Congress Amritsar (rural) district president Bhagwant Pal Singh Sachar expressed disappointment over being denied the ticket from Majitha assembly segment
In a jolt to the ruling Congress, its Amritsar (rural) district president Bhagwant Pal Singh Sachar on Sunday joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence of its national general secretary Tarun Chugh, expressing disappointment over being denied the ticket from Majitha assembly segment.
In Majitha, which is the bastion of senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and former Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, Sachar had been working tirelessly and considered the front runner for the Congress ticket. His claim to the ticket got a fillip after the exit of Sukhjinder Raj Singh, aka Lali Majithia, who had contested the last two polls against Bikram unsuccessfully and recently joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). However, the party allotted the ticket to Lali’s brother Jagwinder Pal Singh, aka Jagga Majithia.
In presence of other senior BJP leaders, including Rajindermohan Singh Chhina, Chugh welcomed Sachar to the party. “I had been noticing for the last many months that factionalism had taken center stage in the Congress in terms of distribution of tickets for assembly polls. Sidhu group, Channi group, Jakhar group… have emerged in the Congress. I was denied the ticket, thanks to this factionalism. This happened despite all surveys conducted by the party in the segment going in my favour,” said Sachar after joining the BJP.
Sachar said that there is a common perception that the Congress gives the ticket to a weak, as per the consent of Bikram Singh Majithia to ensure the SAD candidate’s victory. “This happened here again, and strengthened the perception that this is a friendly match in Majitha. This forced me to say good bye to the Congress and join the BJP, in which I am seeing my political future. However, my joining is unconditional and I will accomplish any responsibility assigned to me,” he said.
Other Congressmen from Amritsar who joined the BJP included Pardip Singh Bhullar, Rattan Singh Sohal, Paramjit Singh Randhawa and Tajinderpal Singh.
