Will contest Hry assembly polls, says Akali Dal

CHANDIGARH:THE Shiromani Akali Dal on Tuesday declared that it will contest the forthcoming Vidhan Sabha elections in Haryana. A decision to this effect was taken at the party’s core committee meeting held here that was chaired by SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal.

But there was no clarity how many seats the party will contest in the neighbouring state.

A spokesperson of the party said the Akali Dal will hold workers’ meeting at Kurukshetra on September 22 to interview candidates interested in contesting the elections. A screening committee headed by Balwinder Singh Bhundar has been formed for the purpose. Those interested have already been asked to submit their applications, he said.

Committee headed by Bhundar will hold negotiations with the Bharatiya Janata Party on seat-sharing. The other members of the committee for the Haryana poll campaign are Prem Singh Chandumajra and Surjit Singh Rakhra. The committee will also prepare the campaign strategy.

The committee passed two resolutions. In the first, it urged the government of India to order immediate release of all Sikh prisoners who are languishing in different jails despite having served their stipulated sentence. The Akali Dal urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to end unconstitutional incarceration of these prisoners on the eve of the 550th Parkash Purb of Guru Nanak.

In another resolution, the party reiterated its strong and principled commitment to promotion of the Punjabi language.

The party came down heavily against the Congress government in Punjab for “its insensitive and incompetent handling” of the situation arising in the wake of floods in the state. It said the beleaguered flood-affected people were left to fend for themselves and the government was nowhere to be seen.

The committee demanded ₹25,000 per acre as compensation for the crop loss or damage and a matching, liberal compensatory grant to farm labourers affected by the floods. The party also demanded full compensation to all flood-affected people for loss of immovable properties.

CAMPAIGN PANELS FOR BYPOLLS

Sukhbir set up campaign committees for the Jalalabad and Dakha by-elections. Former cabinet minister and senior leader Janmeja Singh Sekhon will be the campaign in-charge for the Jalalabad constituency, senior vicepresident Dr Daljit Singh Cheema will head the panel for Dakha.

The committee expressed sorrow over the loss of lives in the Batala firecracker unit blast. Regretting the government apathy in dealing with the situation, the meeting demanded compensation and rehabilitation measures for those affected.