Kairon's father, Surinder Singh Kairon, had represented Patti constituency and also the Tarn Taran parliamentary constituency in the Lok Sabha. Gill is undaunted by the stature of his opponent, the grandson of the legendary Partap Singh Kairon, one of the most powerful chief ministers of Punjab. "After all even Congressmen can be devoted Sikhs, so what is wrong if I joined the Congress, a secular party?" "All, whether Akali or Congress, have respect for their respective religions," said Gill.
On the other hand, Gill, a former member of the All India Sikh Students Federation (AISSF), joined the Congress. There are in all seven candidates from Patti but as in 2007 it will be a direct clash between Kairon and Gill.Ĭoming from a family of Congressmen, Kairon switched over to the 'Panth' (Akali Dal) before the 1997 assembly polls, which he had no difficulty in winning. Pitted against him again is 48-year-old Gill, his 2007 adversary. "Polls or no polls, I always try to attend social functions to which I have been invited in my constituency and even in neighbouring areas," said Kairon, a three-time MLA from here and son-in-law of chief minister Parkash Singh Badal. The wedding functions do not go unnoticed by the candidates.
It may be poll season but it is also the time for marriages.Īdesh-Pratap-Singh-Kairon-the-Shiromani-Akali-Dal-SAD-candidate-and-Punjab-food-and-civil-supplies-minister-and-sitting-MLA-from-Patti-addresses-residents-of-Bhoo-village-Munish-Byala-HT-PhotosĪs candidates slug it out in the bitter winter cold, baratis down a couple of drinks and then let themselves loose on the dance floor inside wedding "palaces" that dot Patti town and rural areas in adjoining Amritsar district.Įven amid the merrymaking, however, Majhails - as residents belonging to the state's northern Majha region are called - find time to sit down and discuss the January 30 assembly elections, often leading to heated discussions but no consensus on who has the edge this time - food and civil supplies minister Adesh Pratap Singh Kairon, 52, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate and sitting MLA from Patti, or the Congress' Harminder Singh Gill.
A cavalcade of SUVs and cars moving slowly in this part of Punjab's Tarn Taran district should not be mistaken for a candidate on the move canvassing support.
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