Our agenda has been lost, it’s breach of trust, says Damanvir Phillaur

Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, January 15

Although ex-Akali minister Sarwan Singh Phillaur who joined the Congress two months back, hasn’t shown any resentment over not being allotted the ticket, his son Damanvir Phillaur looked vexed.

The former minister claims that he came to the Congress unconditionally and his one-point agenda was to defeat the Akalis and that he would continue with the same. Junior Phillaur, however, differs. “Our whole agenda is lost. We came to the Congress hoping that our services will be utilised, but the party has not given us any opportunity either from Phillaur or Kartarpur, where my dad has remained an MLA. They have reduced horses like us to a mere zero,” he seemed badly disillusioned.

While the Kartarpur seat, where Sarwan Singh Phillaur was an MLA in 2012 went to Chaudhary Surinder Singh, the Phillaur Assembly seat went to his cousin Vikramjit Chaudhary. “My dad was inducted with an assurance from party in-charge Asha Kumari that his seat was confirmed. It is a complete breach of trust with us,” said Damanvir.

He added, “We had come to the Congress to give them a rise in Doaba and Majha. Our agenda is still to defeat Akalis, but where do we go now and how do we do this, we really do not know.” Sarwan Singh Phillaur too claims that there was a commitment from Asha Kumari but he says, “I have nothing to say on this. There is no issue from my side on this”.

Even earlier, when the father-son duo was in Akali Dal, it was Damanvir who remained outspoken while the senior Phillaur always maintained his calm, even when the Akali Dal made him step down as a minister after summons by the Enforcement Directorate in the Bhola drug case.

PPCC president Capt Amarinder Singh had faced much revolt from within the party with senior leaders openly opposing his decision to induct Phillaurs. The ticker for Sarwan Singh Phillaur did not reportedly come due to severe opposition from the same camp.