Patiala: A rickshaw-riding Gandhi and his misson—Keeping royals out of Lok Sabha

Lok Sabha Elections 2019: Polling schedule, results date, constituency-wise results, how to check live counting

Gandhi, had contested the 2014 General Election as Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate, defeating Kaur. He was later suspended by the AAP for supporting former party leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan. Gandhi went on to establish his own outfit – Nawan Punjab Party – and is contesting the polls as part of the Punjab Democratic Alliance (PDA).

A cardiologist by profession who is known in and around Patiala for his philanthropy, Gandhi is no stranger to residents of the city. Dressed in Khadi kurta-pyjama, he continues with his march in the scorching heat. Passers by stop, greet him by shaking hands and hugging him. A few of them garland him.

Not in pink of health, Gandhi gestures to a rickshaw puller to a stop, hops on it and carries on as shopkeepers come out to wave at him. A rickshaw is more economical than a car. His contact programme not only helps him keep in touch with the electorate but also helps him collect donations as a part of his crowd-funding campaign. A number of shopkeepers and passerby hand him cash. He accepts it politely after thanking them.

“I have been a doctor. I do not have access to as much money as my political rivals. Therefore I am seeking money. I know it (donations) aren’t enough to run my campaign and I may have to get my fixed deposits encashed. I am contesting to make a point that in India one can win election without spending too much money. It is my battle against corporate funding also. They (corporates) fund our elections and then dictate our policies,” he says.

After breaking away from AAP, Gandhi recalls how the party “scared away its volunteers from him.” But he has cadres of Bahujan Samaj Party and the Communist Party of India (CPI) – both parties also part of the PDA – helping him out. “These people will make up for the AAP volunteers who left me. Some of them though are still with me,” he says.

Even though he began the campaign much ahead of others and says he has an early bird advantage, Gandhi understands that this election is going to be a big challenge. “I am fighting against CM’s wife, money, muscle power and the entire government machinery. Look at the way the CM threatened his colleagues of dropping them from the Cabinet. It was a threat with a hidden message that they should ensure victory of the Congress candidates, no matter what the means are”.

His volunteers say they have to ensure in-charge at 2,000 booths in Patiala, which is a huge task. His poll symbol, a microphone, is not very well known. He admits that there could be some wastage of votes as people still think he is associated with the broom (the AAP symbol). “But we are devoting next 10 days to make the microphone symbol popular. We have devised a strategy”.

Gandhi is seeking votes on spending his MPLAD funds, with half of it – worth Rs 14 crore – spent on providing chairs and RO water purifiers in 1,000 schools across the district, getting cremation grounds developed, and fire stations set up among many other projects.

On allegations that he did not kept in touch with the electorate, he says, “In that case people should elect two parliamentarians. One for attending jagratas, bhogs and other functions and the other for attending the Parliament. They do not understand that the politicians seek to divert attention of people for their poor performance in the Lok Sabha with this so called connect.”

He lists how he got four railway projects for the city, and helped in setting up a passport office, asked over 150 questions (in the Lok Sabha) and presented eight important private bills.