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Journalism of Courage
It is 9 am and Sukhpal Singh, along with few of his relatives, is roaming in the premises of his semi-pucca house at Channu village in Muktsar. A single-seater sofa, which he arranged from a neighbour has been kept in the verandah along with 2-3 cots. Policemen, in a sizeable number, are standing guard, both inside the house and outside.
A security team scans the sofa seat.
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Ten minutes later, Parkash Singh Badal, former Punjab chief minister and the Shiromani Akali Dal patron, arrives at the house. He is guided to the sofa. As soon as he is settled, Sukhpal takes a seat, on plastic chair, and sits near Badal.
Sukhpal’s mother, Bachan Kaur died of old age about six months of old age. She was 85. Badal folds his hands before Sukhpal and says, “Bhot afsos hoyea tuhade mataji bare sun ke (I felt very sad after hearing about your mother’;s demise)”. He questions Sukhpal on how she died. Immediately after Sukhpal’s answer, Badal gets up and is helped out to a waiting vehicle. He has to visit another person’s house.
The just over 2-minute visit has left Sukhpal elated. “We can call him (SAD patron) any time. He visited my house earlier too. My mother died about six months back, but I feel good that the former CM took time out to visit me and condole her death,” says Sukhpal.
Meanwhile, the former CM’s next stop is the house of Kuldeep Kaur. Her Gora Singh died of heart attack. He was 50. Kaur too had requisitioned a sofa from a relative’s house. The visit here was brief – smaller than that at the Sukhpal’s. Badal took the seat, condoled Kuldeep Kaur in a sentence, and left.
“This is the first time he has visited our house. He had been CM for five times,” Kuldeep Kaur said, still in awe of the man.
The two families he visited are from backward class. The caste, age, and cause of death of people in the area are provided to Badal whenever he visits villages. The caste mention remains very specific – Majabi Sikh, Bajigar, Prajapat, Rai Sikh, general category, SC, and so on.
The condolence meetings, congratulatory messages on people getting married, their birthdays or on the birth of a child is how the former CM keeps in touch with the masses in his constituency Lambi.
“The sarpanch or the Akali leader of the village collects such information and forwards it to the former CM’s residence, as and when Badal’s staff demand it,” said Bikar Singh Chanu, the village sarpanch of the Channu village.
In April, by 25th of the month, Badal visited 306 houses in different villages of Lambi. In March, he took such tours for only two days, offering condolences to 32 families.
After visiting Sukhpal and Kuldeep Kaur, the former condoled deaths of six more persons at Channu village. He inquired about the health of one person and held workers meeting at two places where he made an appeal seeking votes for his daughter-in-law, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, who is seeking a third consecutive term from Bathinda.
Channu village falls in Lambi Vidhan Sabha constituency of Muktsar district. However, the Assembly segment is part of the Bathinda parliamentary constituency.
Before attending the workers meeting, Badal went to the house of Surinder Singh Nambardar who is suffering from slip disc after a cow hit him. Nambardar has also been diagnosed with bone TB and is now on a wheel chair. Badal has several words of encouragement for him. “You will be walking soon. Go for a second opinion at Faridkot medical college and get yourself checked from Dr Raj Bahadur Singh, the vice chancellor of Baba Farid University and Health Sciences”.
Badal admits that stray animals are a problem. “The other day, two persons got killed due to stray animal menace”.
As this correspondent took notes, Badal asked, “Bibaji tussi ki lik rahe ho (what are you writing)?” a minute later he says, “I keep visiting people in my constituency as a routine. It is not a new thing. I have been doing this for the past many years. Even at this age, my routine starts at 5am and continues till 8pm with a two-hour break”.
Badal, as per his last affidavit, is now 91 years old.
In between the condolence meetings, Badal does not forget the election agenda as enters the house of one Gulab Singh, just ahead ahead of Nambardar’s, and says, “I want maximum lead for Biba Harsimrat Kaur Badal this time and you have to make a wise decision. You have to choose the prime minister of this country. Choose (Narendra) Modiji. He is experienced. (Congress president) Rahul Gandhi has not even a day’s experience”.
One Sukhram interrupts Badal. He complains that the drain at his house is kuccha and he faces sewer overflow. Soon after, one Lakhwinder come up with a complaint of an FIR lodged by Akali leader Dimpy Dhillon’s bus company. Rulda Singh and Makhan Singh arrive holding cheques worth Rs 15,000 each given to them in November, 2016 during SAD-BJP rule, but which they never could get encashed. Badal quickly winds up the meeting. “The model code of conduct is in place. I cannot talk about such matters now. You all need to take up these issues after the elections”.
Villagers are not convinced and start murmuring as soon as Badal leaves Gulab Singh’s house.
“More condolence meetings will be held in many other villages as well. The lists are with former CM’s office,” Ranjodh Singh, Youth Akali Dal president (Lambi), says as they wind up the day’s programme.
