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Amritsar, Jan 8: Former Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandik Committee(SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur is among the three SGPC members whohave entered the electoral fray as candidates of the Shiromani AkaliDal (SAD) led by Prakash Singh Badal.
The Bibi will again contest from the Bholath assembly constituencywhich has a sizeable percentage of 'Lubana' Sikh voters, the communityto which she belongs. Bibi Jagir Kaur had won this seat on twooccasions, in 1997 and 2002, with impressive margins of above 10,000votes.
In the 190 member SGPC general house, the SAD has around 158members, while the remaining owe allegiance to the other Akali andPanthic factions.
The other two SAD heavyweights and SGPC members in the electoralarena are former ministers Suchha Singh Langah from Dhariwal and SewaSingh Sekhwan from Kahnuwan constituency. Both these constituenciesfall in Gurdaspur district.
Mr Langah and Mr Sekhwan had both been aspirants to the post ofthe SGPC chief, but their aspirations could never be fulfilled, as MrBadal often overlooked them and chose lesser known figures. Mr Badalhand picked Bibi Jagir Kaur in 1998 to head the SGPC, while ignoringtheir claims to this prestigious post.
Mr Langah had won the Dhariwal seat for the first time in the 1997polls but in the last elections, he lost by a slender margin of just 80votes, the narrowest victory margin in Punjab. On the other hand, MrSekhwan won the Dhariwal seat in 1997 but lost to Congress heavyweightPartap Singh Bajwa in the 2002 polls. Mr Bajwa, who is the educationand PWD minister, is expected to be the Congress nominee from this seat.
The present SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar, who was the SADcandidate from Ludhiana West in the last polls, has been denied theticket by the SAD. He had lost in the last elections.
The SAD list also contains the name of Ranjit Singh Talwandi, sonof former SGPC chief and old Akali war-horse Jagdev Singh Talwandi, whois still a member of the SGPC. Ranjit Singh will again contest fromRaikot assembly constituency.
Former minister Gurdev Singh Badal, who is father of SGPC juniorvice-president Kewal Singh Badal, has again been chosen by the SAD forthe Panj Gariana (reserve) seat. Harmel Singh Tohra, son-in-law offormer SGPC chief the late Gurcharan Singh Tohra, has been nominatedfrom the Dakala segment.
Another prominent relative of a SGPC member in the electoral frayis Jagjivan Singh Khirnia, son of Kirpal Singh Khirnia. He will contestas the SAD nominee from the Samrala constituency.
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The Bibi will again contest from the Bholath assembly constituencywhich has a sizeable percentage of 'Lubana' Sikh voters, the communityto which she belongs. Bibi Jagir Kaur had won this seat on twooccasions, in 1997 and 2002, with impressive margins of above 10,000votes.
In the 190 member SGPC general house, the SAD has around 158members, while the remaining owe allegiance to the other Akali andPanthic factions.
The other two SAD heavyweights and SGPC members in the electoralarena are former ministers Suchha Singh Langah from Dhariwal and SewaSingh Sekhwan from Kahnuwan constituency. Both these constituenciesfall in Gurdaspur district.
Mr Langah and Mr Sekhwan had both been aspirants to the post ofthe SGPC chief, but their aspirations could never be fulfilled, as MrBadal often overlooked them and chose lesser known figures. Mr Badalhand picked Bibi Jagir Kaur in 1998 to head the SGPC, while ignoringtheir claims to this prestigious post.
Mr Langah had won the Dhariwal seat for the first time in the 1997polls but in the last elections, he lost by a slender margin of just 80votes, the narrowest victory margin in Punjab. On the other hand, MrSekhwan won the Dhariwal seat in 1997 but lost to Congress heavyweightPartap Singh Bajwa in the 2002 polls. Mr Bajwa, who is the educationand PWD minister, is expected to be the Congress nominee from this seat.
The present SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar, who was the SADcandidate from Ludhiana West in the last polls, has been denied theticket by the SAD. He had lost in the last elections.
The SAD list also contains the name of Ranjit Singh Talwandi, sonof former SGPC chief and old Akali war-horse Jagdev Singh Talwandi, whois still a member of the SGPC. Ranjit Singh will again contest fromRaikot assembly constituency.
Former minister Gurdev Singh Badal, who is father of SGPC juniorvice-president Kewal Singh Badal, has again been chosen by the SAD forthe Panj Gariana (reserve) seat. Harmel Singh Tohra, son-in-law offormer SGPC chief the late Gurcharan Singh Tohra, has been nominatedfrom the Dakala segment.
Another prominent relative of a SGPC member in the electoral frayis Jagjivan Singh Khirnia, son of Kirpal Singh Khirnia. He will contestas the SAD nominee from the Samrala constituency.
UNI >
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