Left’s daily scouts for PSU ads

While the Left takes on the government for its proposed plans to disinvest some PSUs, the party could, perhaps, mull over whether their love...

While the Left takes on the government for its proposed plans to disinvest some PSUs, the party could, perhaps, mull over whether their love for the undertakings is strictly need-based.

A letter dated August 2, bearing the Teen Murti Lane address of Harkishan Singh Surjeet, mentioning his name in bold as the chairman of the paper states: ‘‘This daily is devoted to the cause of secularism and democracy. As our readership synchronises with your desired target, we are sure that releasing advertisements in the columns of Desh Sewak would prove quite efficacious. We request that our daily may kindly be included in regular media plan of the Ministry of Power advertisment campaigns. Hoping to be favoured.’’

The Punjabi paper, published from Chandigarh, has been in circulation since 1996, the letter said.

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When Surjeet was specifically asked about his involvement with the newspaper, he said he was exhausted after daylong meetings and would ‘‘examine’’ the matter. Pointed out that the paper was seeking advertisements from the Power Ministry and other PSUs under his name, Surjeet said he would find out.

Already on the approved panel of the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity, Northern Railways, DPR-Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh, Oswal Fertiliser and Jet Airways, the paper gets advertisements from their end regularly, says Vimal Vohra of Desh Sewak.

Vohra said the address of the office given as 8 Teen Murti Lane, which happens to be Surjeet’s residence, is temporary. ‘‘It is just a temporary office to facilitate easy communication. It is Surjeetji’s house. I know,’’ said Vohra, adding his paper has been getting most of DAVP advertisements and wanted the Ministry of Power to advertise also.

Sources said the newspaper has been pressuring almost every ministry to advertise on its pages. According to the letter, the daily sells more than 70,000 copies a day and has ‘‘wide’’ circulation in Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi.

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