BARINDERMEET SINGH PAHRA (CONG), 36, GURDASPUR

Raised in a political family with Akali leanings, Pahra applied for the Congress ticket in the youth quota by dint of his performance in the YC elections. The party thought Gurdaspur was a hard nut to crack but Pahra was confident. “I promised Capt Amarinder that I would win by 25,000 votes,” he says. He won by 29,000, defeating SAD stalwart Gurbachan Babbehali. Now he says he won’t let anyone else wrest Gurdaspur from him in the next 10-20 years.

SECRET SAUCE

Honesty and accessibility. “I live in a family of three brothers. But we keep an open house,” says Pahra, who begins attending to people at 6 in the morning and winds up only around midnight.

ROAD AHEAD

Pahra, who’s preparing a white paper on Gurdaspur to use as a benchmark for his performance, is planning an industrial park on 3000 acres near Kalanaur. “Agriculture is on the decline, industrialisation is the only hope for our youngsters,” says Pahra, who’s already launched a drive against drugs. Young voters, he predicts, will vote for individuals, not parties in the coming elections.

BY THE WAY

Loves travelling to McLeodganj and Mussoorie with two best buddies.

The real election campaign has begun now