2 Amarinder loyalists stake claim on Ghanaur seat

PATIALA: Although state assembly elections are still more than a year away, the Congress in Patiala is witnessing tug of war between two loyalists of Captain Amarinder Singh, with both of them posing as future party candidate. Their claims even pulled Amarinder's wife and Patiala (Urban) MLA Preneet Kaur into the issue on Tuesday.
Recent activities of former deputy speaker of Punjab Vidhan Sabha Bir Devinder Singh in Ghanaur assembly segment has caused heartburn to former local MLA and die-hard Amarinder supporter Madan Lal Jalalpur.It is Jalalpur whose claim on Ghanaur assembly seat Preneet upheld on Tuesday.
On the other hand, Bir Devinder, for the past over a year, has been seen in almost every function of Amarinder organized in Patiala. He has been portraying himself as a member of former Punjab chief minister's camp. Jalapur had sprung a surprise in 2007 assembly elections when he won from Ghanaur while contesting as an independent candidate. However, in 2012, he had lost to an Akali candidate by narrow margin of around 1,700 votes.
As the seat is now represented by Akali MLA Harpreet Kaur Mukhmailpur, Bir Devinder found it fit to assert his claim on the segment, which is not with the Congress. The former deputy speaker had even organized some meetings in the segment last month and his supporters had also organized a road show in the constituency.
However, on Tuesday Preneet openly supported Jalalpur's claim on the seat. She said that the Congress high command had already "handed over responsibility" of Ghanaur assembly segment to Jalalpur "few years ago". "Everybody has the right to go wherever he wants. But confusions would be cleared once the high command will announce tickets for the coming elections," said Preneet
.
What's more, they are not the only claimants for Congress ticket here
. Family of late senior Congress leader and former cabinet minister Jasjit Singh Randhawa, who represented Ghanaur as an MLA, also asserts claim. Asked about Preneet's statement on Tuesday
in support of Jalalpur, Jasjit's daughter Annu Randhawa said, "I want to ask that why don't we have a claim over this seat?"