multiple-power-centres-plague-aap-govt-in-punjab

 

When the Aam Aadmi Party released the list of “star campaigners” for Ludhiana West assembly by-election, the party supremo Arvind Kejriwal’s name was understandably on the top at serial number one. At serial number two it should ideally have been the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, rather it was not him, but Manish Sisodia, the party in-charge for Punjab. This was a bit surprising since Mann, besides being the Chief Minister, is a two-time MP and currently holding the highest constitutional position among the party leaders.

 

Although the matter did not catch anybody’s attention, it actually does reflect the state of affairs of the party and the control its central leadership asserts over the government. The opposition has already been crying hoarse that the reins of power are not with Punjab, but with Delhi—meaning the high command. Who is in actual command notwithstanding, one thing that is clear is the presence of multiple power centres in Punjab, which is doing no good to the party.

 

This was reflected in a recent surprise development, when the Aam Aadmi Party government in the state on Friday suspended the Senior Superintendent of Police, (Vigilance), Ludhiana, Jagatpreet Singh, for summoning the Congress candidate from Ludhiana West Bharat Bhushan Ashu for questioning. The government claimed that the SSP had acted on his own, with some of the AAP leaders even claiming that Ashu had an understanding with the particular SSP and he got the summons issued himself in order to gain sympathy.

 

On June 4, the SSP Vigilance Ludhiana issued summons, asking Ashu to “join the investigation” on June 6, in connection with an FIR registered in January this year about the alleged misuse of land allotted to a trust for running a school. Ashu claimed that he had resigned from the trust long back. Issuing of summons to him was directly linked with the by-elections, which are scheduled on June 19. The issue became a talking point, particularly when the Congress had already expressed apprehensions that he might be arrested before the elections.

 

It is quite understandable that the SSP concerned would not have issued the summons on his own. The Congress claimed that since it boomeranged and backfired on the AAP, the party government made a scapegoat of the SSP. The Congress also released a photograph where the AAP candidate Sanjeev Arora is seen addressing a group of officers with the SSP Jagatpreet also in attendance. Who ordered the SSP to issue the summons is a million-dollar question. It sure becomes more complex when there are more than one power centres running the show.

 

There are murmurs within the corridors of power that the real control of the government is in Delhi’s hands, meaning Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Satyander Jain. The opposition has been alleging that the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s authority was being undermined and decisions were being thrust on the state. Latest was the appointment to three key positions. They included Deepak Chauhan as Chairman of the Heavy Industries Development Board, Reena Gupta as the Chairperson of the Punjab Pollution Control Board and Shalin Mitra as the OSD to the Punjab Health Minister.

 

These appointments are just in a series, as the AAP has appointed several of its office-bearers at various positions in Punjab in the past also, particularly after it lost Delhi elections.

 

Last week, the government arrested one of its own MLAs, Raman Arora, from Jalandhar, on corruption charges. Arora was believed to be quite close to the Chief Minister’s family. His arrest surprised everyone, particularly those in the ruling party, leaving everyone wondering as to who ordered his arrest, given his proximity with the Chief Minister’s family. However, it was the Chief Minister who explained the reasons behind his arrest, saying that the AAP will not spare anyone when it comes to corruption, no matter who he may be and even when it is its own MLA.

 

Summoning of Ashu during the midst of the election campaign is also being attributed to existence of multiple power centres active in Punjab. Ludhiana West AAP candidate, Sanjeev Arora is not known to be a person who would resort to such tactics. Moreover, he happens to be a businessman from the city who would not like to go out of the way to target his main rival. It is quite likely that the summons were issued either without his knowledge or without his concurrence. And when this led to a lot of resentment among people, the government in a damage control move placed the SSP under suspension. But this move did damage the AAP politically, as the perception went around that it was trying to intimidate the Congress candidate, who is a formidable challenger to the ruling party.

 

The suspension of the SSP may have provided some sort of face saving for the party, but not before providing the Congress a reason to go to people that the government was trying to intimidate its candidate. Whosoever ordered issuing of summons did no good to the party. But that is what happens when there are multiple power centres.