True Lies

Cops on video duty, Khaira fumesThe reported use of Punjab Police personnel for a wedding video shoot has left Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira fuming. Taking a swipe at AAP govt in Punjab, Khaira said police officials were misused during the shoot linked to an associate of AAP MLA Sherry Kalsi. In social media post, Khaira called the episode "cheap misuse" of police officers. He asked whether chief minister Bhagwant Mann, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal and the DGP would take action in the matter. He also accused state govt of targeting opposition leaders instead of addressing such incidents.Too much cheer may have incensed RaGaMinutes before Rahul Gandhi issued a stern warning to senior leaders of warring Punjab Congress, a large number of workers were heard hooting for one of the leaders. When that leader was called to address the rally, workers cheered loudly. Even the mention of his name would invite a roar from the crowd. A senior leader said it seemed the workers had been planted by the leader and it was this indiscipline that might have forced Rahul Gandhi to issue a warning to state seniors to unite as only team work would help the party win. The warning, it has been learnt, cheered a group within the Congress, who were feeling threatened.For seniors, Badal plays the ‘seep' cardIn poll-bound Punjab, where promises fly thicker than pamphlets, a new electoral masterstroke has been dealt — a state-sponsored ‘Seep Championship'. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal has pledged that if SAD is voted to power, the party-led govt will organise a grand ‘taash' (card) tournament. The winning village team at the district level would secure a Rs 10-lakh grant, while the state champions would fetch Rs 1 crore for their village. But here's the clever shuffle: the tournament is strictly for the elderly. Village youth — often at the centre of debates on jobs and opportunities — have been excluded. The move neatly sidesteps potential opposition attacks that SAD is promoting cards over careers. Badal says the idea struck him while watching seniors play 'seep' in villages, including his native Badal village. "I thought, we should do something to encourage elderly also," says Badal. Varying inferences of RaGa's warningDifferent camps in the Punjab Congress are interpreting Rahul Gandhi's public warning differently. If Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring's camp is happy that the message was meant for Charanjit Singh Channi's camp, the latter believes it was meant for the former, as he is now responsible for taking all the camps along. Even the inferences are different. Channi's camp is happy that his popularity was showcased at the rally in Malwa region, to which Warring belongs to. However, the latter's camp believes it did not go well with Rahul. A larger section in the Congress believes that the reprimand was for all the main leaders, especially the visible camps, whose squabbling was also not so subtle in the past.War on drugs: A new battlefield for this soldierParam Vir Chakra awardee Subedar Major (honorary captain) Sanjay Kumar hung up his boots on Feb 28 after serving the nation in olive greens for over 29 years. The brave son of Kalol Bakain village in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh has chosen a new mission — to wage war against drug addiction poisoning our youth. His fight against ‘chitta' (heroin) reflects the same indomitable spirit that defined his military service. Soldiers may hang up their boots, but legends never retire. They simply change their battlefield, continuing to defend the nation in every possible way.House buzz: Opp braces for Saini's marathons Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini is acquiring a new reputation in the assembly — for marathon replies that leave the opposition uneasy. Before moving adjournment or calling attention motions, especially on departments he handles, opposition members are said to be more worried about the length and detail of his responses than the government's stand. On the eve of the budget presentation, the buzz in the corridors is that members are bracing for another long reply during the discussion. So much so that some have been heard half-jokingly urging the chief minister to keep it brief.(Contributed by Vinod Kumar, Neel Kamal, Navjeevan Gopal, IP Singh, Sanjeev Verma, Manvir Saini)