19122025-ATR-01.qxd 12/19/2025 12:36 AM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune REPAIR WORK ON BUSY ROAD FLAYED AMID FOGGY WEATHER JUDOKA RAKESH GILL BEATS POVERTY TO SHINE IN GAMES Athletes like judoka Rakesh Gill, overcome poverty through determination, discipline and dedication. P3 PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 20°C | MIN 10°C YESTERDAY MAX 21°C | MIN 7°C ACTRESS SREELEELA SLAMS DEEPFAKES, MISUSE OF AI Repair work on the road near the Verka bypass is posing a serious risk to commuters amid foggy weather. P2 FORECAST Actress Sreeleela has requested social media users not to support AI-generated nonsense. P4 » » SUNSET FRIDAY 5.29 PM SUNRISE SATURDAY 7.25 AM » FRIDAY | 19 DECEMBER 2025 | AMRITSAR ZILA PARISHAD AND BLOCK SAMITI ELECTIONS Landslide for AAP in Amritsar Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Amritsar, December 18 The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) swept the rural body elections in the district, winning 149 zones, while the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) secured 27 zones and the Congress won 18 zones. Buoyed by the resounding victory, local AAP leaders and workers celebrated the outcome and credited it to the policies of the state government. In the zila parishad elections, AAP maintained its dominance by winning 19 zones, while the Shiromani Akali Dal won four zones and the Congress secured one zone. The district has a total of 24 zila parishad zones and 195 block samiti zones. Elections were held in 21 zila parishad zones and 132 block samiti zones, as candidates of the ruling party were declared elected unopposed in three zila parishad zones and 63 block samiti zones due to the absence of rival nominations or rejection of nomination papers. In Harsha Chhina block Secures majority in six block samitis in Tarn Taran district Gurbaxpuri Ravi Dhaliwal Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO felicitates party leaders who won the rural body elections in Amritsar on Friday. samiti, which has 15 zones, AAP won 14 seats, including nine unopposed, while the Shiromani Akali Dal managed to secure one seat. In Ajnala subdivision, AAP won 16 of the 18 zones, including five unopposed, while the Shiromani Akali Dal bagged two zones. Out of 20 zones in the Chogawan block samiti, AAP emerged victorious in 18 zones, including 12 unopposed, while the Shiromani Akali Dal won two seats. In Akali bastion Majitha, which has two block samitis comprising 33 zones, AAP managed to win 29 zones, including 20 unopposed. The Shiromani Akali Dal won three zones, while the Congress secured just one. AAP spokesperson and Ajnala MLA Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, along with the winning candidates, paid obeisance at the Golden Temple on Thursday. Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO later felicitated the victorious candidates. District Judge visits Central Jail, assesses facilities Tarn Taran, December 18 The results of all zones of the zila parishad and the panchayat samitis were declared on Wednesday night, with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) emerging as the dominant force. AAP won 17 zila parishad zones, while the Congress and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) secured one zone each. The ruling party also secured a majority in six of the nine block samitis. However, AAP failed to secure a majority in three block samitis — Nagoke, Khadoor Sahib and Chohla Sahib. District Election Officer-cum-Deputy Commissioner Rahul said that out of the total 20 zila parishad zones, AAP candidates were elected unopposed from 12 zones. In the elections held for the remaining zones, AAP won five zones, while one zone each was won by the Shiromani Akali Dal and the Congress. The election in the Khadoor Sahib zila parishad zone was declared cancelled due to technical reasons. Victory certifi- Tribune News Service A winning candidate being given the victory certificate by the Returning Officer in Tarn Taran. PHOTO BY WRITER cates were issued to the winning candidates by the respective Returning Officers on the spot. District Election Officer Rahul said that out of the 17 zones of the Tarn Taran panchayat samiti, AAP candidates won 16 seats, while one seat was secured by a Shiromani Akali Dal candidate. In the Gandiwind block samiti, which has 15 zones, AAP candidates won all seats uncontested. In the Khadoor Sahib block samiti, comprising 25 zones, six AAP candidates, eight Shiromani Akali Dal candidates, 10 Congress candidates and one Independent candidate were declared winners. Out of the 16 zones of the Chohla Sahib block samiti, AAP candidates won three zones, Shiromani Akali Dal candidates won five zones, Congress candidates secured seven zones, and one zone was won by a BJP candidate. In the Nagoke block samiti, which has 15 zones, AAP candidates won five zones, Congress candidates secured eight zones, continued on page 2 KMM launches protest over Electricity Act, other demands Tribune News Service AAP chief spokesperson and Ajnala constituency MLA Kuldeep Dhaliwal along with election winners pays obeisance at the Golden Temple in Amritsar on Thursday. Poll victory reflects people’s trust in AAP govt, says Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Amritsar, December 18 Ajnala constituency MLA Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, also the chief spokesperson of the Punjab Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), on Thursday paid obeisance at Darbar Sahib along with the party’s winning candidates in the rural body elections. Following AAP’s landslide victory in the zila parishad and block samiti elections, Dhaliwal described the outcome as a clear endorsement of the development works carried out by the government led by Chief Minister Results tilt heavily in favour of AAP in Gurdaspur Bhagwant Singh Mann. “It is evident that the people have put their stamp of approval on the development work undertaken by the Aam Aadmi Party government. The opposition contested together across Punjab, yet they could not defeat AAP candidates,” he said. Dhaliwal claimed that the government has fulfilled the promises made to the people and that large-scale development works in villages contributed significantly to the party’s victory. Referring to the remaining tenure of the government, Dhaliwal said, “In the next 14 months, most of the develop- ment works will be completed. We will then take our report card to the people’s court in the 2027 Assembly elections and seek votes.” He added that AAP does not believe in “political drama” and relies solely on its performance. “I am confident that people will give our party another chance after seeing our work,” he said. Dhaliwal reiterated that the Punjab Government follows a zero-tolerance policy towards drugs and gangsterism. He also rejected allegations made by the opposition regarding the cancellation of ballot papers or tampering with the counting process. Amritsar, December 18 The District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Amritsar, on Thursday inspected the Central Jail here to review its functioning, sanitation arrangements and inmate welfare. District and Sessions Judge Jatinder Kaur, accompanied by Amardeep Singh Bains, Secretary, District Legal Services Authority, Amritsar, inspected various sections of the jail, including barracks, the kitchen, hospital, sanitation facilities, women’s barracks and security arrangements. They assessed the quality of food being served to inmates, the availability of potable drinking water, cleanliness of living spaces and the functioning of medical services. Emphasising the need to ensure humane living conditions, the District and Sessions Judge underlined strict adherence to legal provisions governing jail administration. She also interacted with undertrials and convicted prisoners, heard continued on page 2 Women farmers stage a protest outside the DC office in Amritsar on Thursday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Tribune News Service Amritsar, December 18 The Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) on Thursday began a two-day dharna outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office here to protest against the proposed amendments to the Electricity Act and to press for the fulfilment of other long-pending demands. The protest witnessed participation from farmers and farm labourers across different parts of the district, who raised slogans against the Centre and the state government, accusing them of ignoring the concerns of the farming community. Leaders of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha said the proposed amendments to the Electricity Act would open the power sec- tor to private players. They alleged that the privatisation of electricity distribution would lead to a steep hike in power tariffs, making electricity unaffordable for farmers, farm labourers and the general public. They also expressed apprehensions that subsidies could be withdrawn in the future, which would severely impact agriculture and rural livelihoods. Addressing the protesters, KMM leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said electricity is a basic necessity and should remain under public control. He warned that handing over the sector to private companies would prioritise profit over public welfare. The union reiterated that farmers are already burdened with rising input costs and that any increase in electricity rates would further deepen their financial distress. The Kisan Mazdoor Morcha also criticised the government for failing to hold meaningful talks with farmer unions on the issue. Leaders said that despite repeated representations, their concerns have not been addressed so far. “If the government does not initiate dialogue and withdraw the proposed amendments, the agitation will be intensified,” Pandher said. The union announced that if their demands are not met, it will organise a ‘rail roko ’ protest on December 20 to draw the attention of the authorities. However, leaders added that they remain open to talks and hope the government will resolve the issue through dialogue. Gurdaspur, December 18 The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) reigned supreme in the zila parishad and block samiti elections across Gurdaspur district. Out of the 25 zila parishad zones, AAP secured 17 seats, while the Congress won eight. In the 201 zones of the 11 block samitis, AAP emerged victorious in 124 zones, followed by the Congress with 64, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) with six, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with four, and Independents winning three. Barring the Dinanagar Assembly constituency, which comprises four zila parishad zones and 37 block samiti zones, AAP candidates dominated all other Assembly segments in the district. In Dinanagar, the Congress swept all four zila parishad zones. In the block samiti elections, Congress candidates won 11 out of 22 zones in the Dinanagar block and also secured 11 of the 15 zones in the Dorangla block. The polls were not without controversy. Dinanagar sitting Congress MLA Aruna Chaudhary lodged a strongly worded complaint with the State Election Commissioner against Dera Baba Nanak AAP MLA Gurdeep Singh Randhawa and Dinanagar Halqa in-charge Shamsher Singh. She attached a video to her complaint in which Randhawa and Shamsher were allegedly seen sitting atop a vehicle and heard openly intimidating voters. In her complaint, Chaudhary stated, “Such acts are in gross violation of the Model Code of Conduct, election laws and democratic norms. The open threats to voters were intended to influence and coerce them into voting for AAP thereby creating , fear among the electorate.” A senior Congress leader claimed that despite alleged attempts by AAP leaders to vitiate the electoral process, the Congress still managed to win both blocks in the Dinanagar Assembly constituency. In the Qadian Assembly constituency, represented by Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa, the Congress won two of the three zila parishad zones. In the block samiti elections, the Congress secured 10 of the 15 zones in the Kahnuwan block, while in the Dhariwal block, it won five of the eight zones. 4 held for firing during Cross-border smuggling cartel busted; three held with 4.5 kg heroin clash in Chheharta Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Amritsar, December 18 The Chheharta police have arrested four persons in connection with a firing incident and a violent clash that took place in Guru Amardas Colony near Chheharta here on Wednesday night. A case has been registered under Sections 109, 351(2), 191(3) and 190 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act against the accused. The police said four accused — Rattan Singh, Vikramjeet Singh alias Vicky, Gurpreet Singh alias Mani and Manjeet Singh — have been arrested, while further investigation is underway to ascertain the role of other persons involved. Amritsar, December 18 The Amritsar Commissionerate Police have busted an international drug cartel with the arrest of three smugglers, leading to the recovery of 4.5 kg of heroin and a .30 bore pistol. The arrested have been identified as Gurwinder Singh, alias Gopi (23), of Shahwala village in Ferozepur; Tilak, alias Shibu (18), a native of Rajiv Gandhi Vihar, Jalandhar, presently residing in Mustafabad, Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar addresses mediapersons in Amritsar on Thursday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR c m y b Amritsar; and Daljit Singh, alias Lala (20), a resident of Naushera Dhalla village, currently living in Mustafabad. Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav said preliminary investigations indicate that the accused were in contact with a foreign-based handler through social media platforms and were transporting and supplying heroin and illegal arms under his directions. Sharing operational details, Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said Gurwinder Singh was first apprehended with 1.5 kg of heroin and a .30 bore pistol. During interrogation, he disclosed the involvement of two accomplices, leading to the arrests of Tilak and Daljit Singh and the recovery of an additional 3 kg of heroin from their possession. “Investigations revealed that Gurwinder Singh, residing near the International Border in Ferozepur, was actively involved in receiving drug consignments via drone drops,” he said, adding that Gurwinder was reportedly coordinating directly with a foreign-based smuggler to procure heroin and other illegal consignments. The police said further investigation is underway to establish the forward and backward linkages in the case and to identify other persons involved in the smuggling network. A case has been registered under the NDPS Act and the Arms Act at the Gate Hakima police station.