Punjab poll diary: The new Jakhar from Abohar, clash of realtors

Sandeep Jakhar, a nephew of former PPCC chief Sunil Jakhar, and a progressive farmer of the region, will now be taking the family legacy forward from Abohar.

Sandeep, whose wife is an Italian, is said to be passionate about his farm and has continued to stick on even as other relatives sold off their lands and moved to the national capital. (Twitter/Sandeep Jakhar)

Sandeep Jakhar, a nephew of former PPCC chief Sunil Jakhar, and a progressive farmer of the region, will now be taking the family legacy forward from Abohar. Sandeep, whose wife is a Japanese, is said to be very passionate about farming. Locals say the low-key farmer has been active in raising awareness about social issues. One institution he is very proud of is the government school at Abohar, arguably the oldest in the region. GSSS Abohar was established in 1862. It has a heritage building and a vast sprawling campus equipped with modern facilities. As they say, old is gold.

Realtor versus realtor in Zirakpur

Realtors are having a good run in this election, especially in areas around Chandigarh. Kulwant Singh, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate from Mohali, is a well-known realtor much like the Akali Dal nominee NK Sharma from Dera Bassi. Sharma, a two-time MLA from this constituency, is among the biggest developers of the area with projects across Zirakpur.

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On Friday, the BJP announced another realtor Sanjeev Khanna from this seat. AAP has chosen Kuljit Singh Randhawa, a trucker. It will be an interesting fight for Zirakpur, which is facing a severe problem of overcrowding and inadequate civic amenities. What better way to solve these than to elect people who caused it in the first place.

Zira also gets a shawl

Kulbir Sigh Zira, the Congress candidate from Zira, is taking a cue from the bigwigs in the party when it comes to his sartorial preferences. Zira, who won his maiden election in 2017, played a big role in toppling Amarinder, behind the scenes, of course. These days he is busy seeking votes, snug in a warm shawl, like both the Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu and CM Channi. While Channi keeps it simple with an off-white ‘loi’, Zira seems to have taken a leaf from Sidhu, turning up in villages with a salmon-coloured designer shawl. A little bird tells us Sidhu is borrowing heavily from his better half and so are others. Zira too, we presume.

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