Journalism of Courage
PUNJAB Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh Monday started his three-day “Captain Kisan Yatra”, while putting his Halke Vich Captain and Congress Express programmes on hold.
The PCC chief’s Kisan Yatra is also seen as a bid to cut his predecessor Partap Singh Bajwa to size. Bajwa, who was appointed patron of the party’s farmers’ front, Kisan Chetna Lehar, has been organising farmers’ programmes without the stamp of PPCC. He was not invited for the flagging-off ceremony of the yatra that saw who’s who of the Punjab Congress at the Congress Bhawan.
WATCH VIDEO: Punjab Congress Party Members Burn Badals Effigy
The 500-km yatra will cover the districts of Moga, Faridkot, Ludhiana, Bathinda, Muktsar, Jalalabad and Ferozepur.
PPCC senior vice-president Lal Singh termed Amarinder as the “messiah of poor and farmers” as the bus was flagged off by nine widows of farmers who had committed suicide.
Amarinder appealed to the farmers not to commit suicide for another three months, and wait for his government to come to power.
On day one, the PPCC chief reached Baghapurana in Moga, where AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal had held a massive farmers’ rally last month.
Amarinder’s roadshow also witnessed the burning of ‘Chitta Ravan’, an effigy with photos of CM Parkash Singh Badal, Deputy CM Sukbir Badal and Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, at the Baghapurana main chowk.
As farmers complained to him about paddy produce not being lifted from mandis, Amarinder said: Eh Badal tuhaada jhona ni chakk re, par main inna nu chakkunga (Badals are not lifting your paddy, I will uproot them in the forthcoming polls).”
Amarinder said that ‘burning of Chhitta Raavan’ has become a statewide Congress protest against drug abuse. “By attacking our leaders and workers in Ludhiana and stopping them from burning Chitta Ravan, the police and Akalis have motivated us to protest against drugs. Let us see who stops me tomorrow in Ludhiana,” Amarinder said.
Bajwa was conspicuous by his absence at the event that was also attended by general secretary incharge Asha Kumari, AICC secretary Harish Choudhary, former chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, former CLP leader Sunil Jakhar besides Lal Singh.
Bajwa, sources in the Amarinder camp said, was creating a heartburn in the Congress by organising successful functions at Gurdaspur, Bathinda and Hoshiarpur without keeping PPCC in the loop. Bajwa was also actively taking up the cause of farmers on social media. All this was not going down well with certain Congress leaders.
Sources in Congress said the Kisan Yatra is a Punjab’s version of AICC Vice President Rahul Gandhi’s similar yatra in Uttar Pradesh.
Lal Singh said he was not aware whether Bajwa was invited or not, “I came late for the function. Hence, I am not aware,” said Lal Singh. When reached, Bajwa said he was not invited to the event.
