Chandigarh: Senior congress leader & Punjab’s leader of the opposition (LoP) Partap Singh Bajwa has called upon the Election Commission of India (ECI) to ensure implementation of the model code of conduct in letter and spirit during the Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll scheduled for May 10.
Bajwa said the EC in order to ensure level playing field for all candidates must ask the Punjab government to immediately remove pictures of state chief minister Bhagwant Mann from Aam Aadmi clinics which could surely provide some advantage to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate.
“ Mann is so fastidious about hanging his own pictures at the Aam Aadmi clinics that he even got three persons arrested associated with the Punjab Students Union (PSU). These PSU students only wanted to hang the picture of Shahede Aazam Bhagat Singh and his uncle Ajit Singh at the Aam Aadmi clinic at Khatkar Kalan which were removed by Bhagwant Mann government only to grab cheap publicity”, added Bajwa.
Bajwa said the AAP and its senior leadership often got perturbed if they did not get enough space in the media for which they were even ready to spend hard earned money of the tax payers in crores only to see their own pictures on the posters, banners and the hoardings. The AAP was known for indulging in big time propaganda through the state exchequer money.
“ Therefore it becomes extremely important that the ECI and its observers keep a close watch on the shady activities of the AAP leaders who can go to any extent including illegal means to garner votes for the AAP candidate”, added Bajwa.
Bajwa said this time AAP would be more keen & eager to show some result in the Jaldnahr bypoll as it had already lost the home constituency of Bhagwant Mann last year.
Bajwa said the fact of the matter was that people of Jalandhar have always posed their faith in the congress party and especially after the sad and untimely demise of their beloved leader Chaudhary Santokh Singh they would love to shower their blessings on the family of the departed soul and the congress party.
Bajwa said the EC also had to keep a close watch on the government resources that AAP candidates might use for his own benefit. “ The commission must ask the ministers to remove red beacons and even tricolor flags from the official cars while they go for the campaign in Jalandhar. Similarly the EC needed to keep a close watch on the use of choppers or even a fixed wing aircraft that the AAP might use to ferry their leaders from Delhi to campaign in Jalandhar.