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Badals turn Maghi mela into
political jambooree, Cong into slugfest
Gian Inder Singh
 CHANDIGARH:
Muktsar's Maghi Mela, holy to the Sikh sangat worldwide and
an open arena for flinging politically motivated allegations for
politicians of all hues, saw Parkash Singh Badal-Sukhbir Badal duo
pulling out all stops to bring on teeming crowds and use the
occasion to seek vote for rightwing Hindutva hardcore RSS-BJP while
Congressmen supporters of two rival aspirants for Lok Sabha ticket
indulged in an ugly public scuffle.
Instead of underlining the great message of the
self-sacrificing 40 Sikh Muktas, Parkash Singh Badal expressed
confidence that L K Advani, who has claimed some credit in his book
for pressurising then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi for Operation
Bluestar, will be the country's next Prime Minister.
Badal shared the stage with BJP Cabinet Minister Manoranjan
Kalia who behaves like a Deputy CM and whose photograph appears in
most government advertisements completely unconnected with his
portfolio.
Congressmen proved no better as media and people searched for
the elusive sign of unity in the ranks of leaders but Amarinder
Singh and his camp followers gave the occasion a miss and party
legislators' group leader Rajinder Kaur Bhattal did not help when
she explained that the former CM was busy preparing for some legal
case.
Malwa strongman of the Congress, Jagmeet Singh Brar spoke
well but his speech was outshined by the rowdy enthusiasm of his
supporters who clashed with supporters of Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi.
Both Brar and Sodhi are aspiring for the Lok Sabha ticket from
Ferozepur.
Neither the Akalis had anything concrete or inspiring to say
nor the main Opposition was able to underline any contending thought
in politics. The boredom of speeches was a replica of whathad
happened at the Fatehgarh Sahib Jor Mela just a few days back.
As if people's patience was stillto be tested, Badal urged
the crowds to be more patient and give the government some time to
put things in order. Manpreet Singh Badal was the only one who
narrated pithy tales of corrupt politicians and bureaucrats,
regaling the audience with some mirth but making a point that most
Akalis would not have missed.
Surprising was the innocence of Badal as he made the claim
that the "people of Punjab are committed to the Akali leadership not
because of any promises like jobs or subsidies, but the masses
elected us back to power because of their commitment to the Akali
ideology."
SGPC chief Avtar Singh also addressed the congregation.
At the Congress congregation, Brar and Bhattal accused the
Akali-BJP government of spreading a “reign of terror and targeting
the innocent people”. Such generalised allegations are par for the
course in
Punjab and the words bandied about are still "zulam", "hankaar", "badla"
etc, a remnant of politics discarded by the civilised world decades
earlier.
14 January 2009
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