10052023-JTR-01.qxd 5/10/2023 12:22 AM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune LINKING SCHOOL, HIGHER & TECHNICAL EDUCATION: BAINS TOM CRUISE MINGLES WITH SHAKIRA AT MIAMI GRAND PRIX THE HORROR GENRE IS YET TO REACH ITS POTENTIAL: GUL Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains addressed a large gathering at Punjab Technical University. P2 Actor Tom Cruise recently brushed shoulders with pop star Shakira at the Miami Grand Prix. P3 Gul Panag is receiving a lot of praise for her work in the recently released short film The Haunting. P4 » » FORECAST MOSTLY SUNNY MAX 38°C | MIN 19°C YESTERDAY MAX 36°C | MIN 18°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 7:05 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 5:32 AM » WEDNESDAY | 10 MAY 2023 | JALANDHAR 2,646 plaints related to code violation: EC A decked-up pink poll booth at HMV College in Jalandhar on Tuesday. PHOTO: SARABJIT SINGH All set for free & fair poll JALANDHAR LOK SABHA BYPOLL Tribune News Service Jalandhar, May 9 The civil and police administration said they were fully prepared to conduct the Lok Sabha bypoll in a free and fair manner peacefully by dispatching polling parties to their respective polling locations across district. The voting will be held from 8 am to 6 pm. Deputy Commissionercum-District Election Officer Jaspreet Singh said all requisite polling parties had been dispatched with the necessary poll equipment and machinery. He said of 3,300 COPS ACROSS DIST; 360 ON PATROL DUTIES, 908 AT NAKAS the total 16,21,800 voters, 2,00,018 were in the Phillaur Assembly constituency, 1,91,067 in Nakodar, 1,82,026 in Shahkot, 1,79,704 in Kartarpur, 1,65,973 in Jalandhar West, 1,68,237 in Jalandhar Central, 1,83,363 in Jalandhar North, 1,86,450 in Jalandhar Cantt and 1,64,962 in Adampur Vidhan Sabha constituency. Similarly, there are 242 polling stations in Phillaur, 252 in Nakodar, 250 in Shahkot, 228 in Kartarpur, 183 in Jalandhar West, 186 in Jalandhar Central, 196 in Jalandhar North, 218 in Jalandhar Cantt and 217 in Adampur. The Deputy Commissioner along with other officers visited different locations from where the polling parties were dispatched to their respective duty destinations. Jaspreet Singh pointed out that the candidate’s election booth having one table, two chairs with party flag and banners with party symbol or photograph are to be installed beyond 200 metres of the polling station. The size of the banner should be 4X8 feet and candidates must have taken prior permission from their Assistant Returning Officer concerned for erecting election booth. No canvassing within 100 metres Continued on Page 2 Jalandhar, May 9 The Election Commission has so far received as many as 2,646 complaints since the Model Code of Conduct came into force. Chief Election Commissioner Punjab C Sibin today said 1,083 complaints had been received on National Grievances Redressal Portal (NGRS), of which 989 were disposed of, while 94 are under process. 1,142 RECEIVED ON AAP FOUND CORRECT & DISPOSED OF He further informed that 1,381 complaints were received on v-Vigil App, of which 1,142 were found correct and resolved within stipulated 100 minutes. Poll officials will remain vigilant on the D-day as well as the Jalandhar consituency with a total 16,21,800 voters, comprising 8,44,904 men and 7,76,855 women and 41 transgender, goes to election. Nineteen candidates, including four women, are in the fray. The Jalandhar Lok Sabha (reserved) seat fell vacant following the death of Congress MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary. He suffered a cardiac arrest during the party's Bharat Jodo Yatra in Phillaur in January this year. — TNS c m y b High-stakes battle for ballot today If the high-decibel, hectic campaign in the run-up to the Lok Sabha byelection is any indication, it’s a battle for prestige for all parties — be it AAP, Congress, BJP or the Akali Dal. All of them have left nothing to chance to catch the attention of discerning voters to secure a win, considering it will lay the ground for the 2024 General Election. Tribune reporter Aparna Banerji finds out what this byelection means for candidates and their parties. SUSHIL KUMAR RINKU (AAP) A FTER the loss in the Sangrur Lok Sabha byelection, the Jalandhar bypoll is a significant battle for AAP which has itself , stated that “the seat would give us more power in the state”. Despite being just over a year in power, the party is faced with challenges after the murders of Sidhu Moosewala, Sandeep Nangal Ambiyan and Timmy Chawla. Sushil Rinku, who was seen sharing the stage with Congress leaders days ago, switched to a party with a completely different value system. He dresses in a kurtapyjama and jacket and supports a twirled moustache. Making peace with opponents within the new party, the firebrand leader’s poll campaign was marked with less aggressive demeanour, as compared to before. KARAMJIT KAUR (CONG) I T is the first major litmus test for the Congress after its loss in the 2022 Assembly elections. After the demise of Santokh Singh Chaudhary, his widow and party candidate Karamjit Kaur Chaudhary has a huge responsibility to keep intact the Dalit bastion which has been retained by the Chaudhary family for decades. A two-time MP and three-time MLA, senior Chaudhary had a long political career marked with a self-made identity as a senior Dalit leader. His son Vikramjit won from Phillaur in the 2022 poll, expanding the family’s hold. The mother-son duo now has to shoulder the legacy he left. While her party colleagues fire pointed salvos, Karamjit Kaur, a former principal, refrains from badmouthing her political opponents — in much a style reminiscent of her husband. SUKHWINDER SUKHI (SAD-BSP) T HE SAD-BSP candidate and Banga legislator Dr Sukhwinder Singh Sukhi has enjoyed a good image within the party and thus emerged as the unanimous choice of the alliance despite some nuanced Dalit leaders from the Akali Dal being in consideration for the high-stakes Lok Sabha byelection. An ENT doctor and two-time legislator, Sukhi has an onerous task of bringing the SAD back into the thick of things. The Akali Dal is faced with the task of asserting its erstwhile presence in the state — which suffered a huge setback in 2022 Assembly elections. A composed leader, Sukhi’s campaign is also sans the heightened fever pitch of the polls. He dresses in whites — most often donning a white kurta or shirt. INDER IQBAL ATWAL (BJP) H AVING split from the SAD and in view of its 2024 and 2027 vision, the BJP wants to prove that it can independently woo the Punjab electorate on its own. Inder Iqbal Atwal served as the country’s youngest legislator in 2002 as SAD’s Koom Kala MLA. His activism as an SAD youth leader, his tenure as an MLA and his father Charanjit Singh Atwal’s goodwill endeared him to the BJP which , gave him the big responsiblity. Atwal’s campaign is assertive but non-confrontational. Despite joining amidst a controversy and being a newbie to the Doaba scenario, he has held his own. He dresses in a kurtapyjama with a BJP stole often around his neck and his signature black turban. Also refraining from training guns at opponents, Atwal concentrates on talking about PM’s schemes.