JOIN USThe fierce contest to secure one Lambi constituency in Punjab, perhaps, will remind many of Om Puri starred Bollywood movie ‘Teen thay bhai’ (There were three brothers) released this year.
Just that the three brothers on the big screen lived happily thereafter. In Lambi, it’s a straight contest between three Badal brothers, the elder one being the Chief Minister of Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal, and a happy ending looks unlikely, at least for now.
Never before have political parties focused so much on one single constituency. But Lambi, for them, is special for reasons beyond political. This constituency has developed more into a mark of symbolism and a clash of heavyweights, or to be precise, warring brothers. CM Badal, his brother Gurdass Badal and their first cousin Mahesh Inder Singh Badal are set to clash from the same seat of Lambi. For once in Lambi, personalities are dominating political space and real issues have taken a back seat.
Both Gurdass and CM Badal grew up together and augmented similar political ambitions. Both were witness to the ugly days of terrorism in Punjab, the return of peace in the state and its gradual foray into some sort of political and economic stability that exists now. Their cousin Mahesh Inder has been a family rebel for some time now. He contested against big brother Parkash Singh Badal on the Congress ticket in the last assembly election, but lost by a not-so-huge margin of 9000 votes considering that the fight was against a four-time CM and a candidate who was the lone choice for the post of CM for the Akali Dal. This time, he fancy’s winning the contest, gaining advantage in the fight of the blood brothers. “In the last poll, Gurdass and Parkash were united. Its not the case this time. I will win from Lambi,” Mahesh Inder said.
The two brothers fell apart off late over differences between their foreign-bred sons. Till a year ago, Gurdass Badal’s son Manpreet Badal stood tall as a cabinet minister under his uncle and CM Parkash Singh Badal’s rule. The CM’s son Sukhbir Badal, the heir apparent, is the deputy CM in Punjab. Both Manpreet and Sukhbir never had a good rapport and the spite is wide open in public glare now that Manpreet has turned a detractor. After his unceremonious exit from his parent party, Manpreet Badal launched a new party - the People’s Party of Punjab (PPP). The PPP feels that the CM’s brother Gurdass Badal could be the only candidate who could stand up against the four-time CM. Manpreet Badal said, “My father is the strongest contender against my uncle on his home turf in Lambi in Muktsar district”. But Badal’s track record in elections will make even his strongest political adversaries sweat.
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