The outcome of Punjab should serve as a point of introspection for the Central government, which had so far been insisting that its farm laws were for the betterment of the agricultural community, and would help in boosting this sector. The Lok Sabha polls in the State as also in parts of Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh have demonstrated that the New Delhi backed measures had been now openly rejected by the people, and therefore there was a need to review them. The Chandigarh incident where a CISF constable, Kulwinder Kaur allegedly slapped Mandi MP elect, Kangana Ranaut at the airport, represents this sentiment. Of course, the act by the policewoman is indefensible and against all norms which govern uniformed personnel. She has been suspended, and a court of inquiry has been ordered against her. She will be dealt with under the law. She has claimed that she did this since Kangana had insulted the farmers and called them anti-national and extremists.
The farming community in this State which has more martyrs than any other region of the country, has been up in arms since the laws were sought to be implemented. There is a very strong connection between the Kisans and the Jawans and this is the reason why former Prime Minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri, had during the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war, given the slogan of Jai Jawan-Jai Kisan. In many families, one son becomes a kisan and the other a jawan.
Unfortunately, the Central laws did not sit well with the farmers and many families in the rural areas which sent their sons to the armed forces were also disappointed when the Agniveer scheme was introduced without any consultations. This anger has manifested itself in both the voting pattern and the overall attitude of the State towards New Delhi.
The BJP which contested the polls on its own has drawn a naught. This was expected since the party nominees, (incidentally most of them former Congressmen) were unable to get entry into villages. In the process, Preneet Kaur, four-time Lok Sabha MP and wife of former Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh, on the Congress ticket, who fought the polls as the BJP nominee for the first time, was amongst those who were vanquished from the family bastion. Similarly, Ravneet Singh Bittu, sitting MP from Ludhiana, and grandson of former CM, Beant Singh, who switched sides, lost to the Congress nominee, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring. There were several others such as Arvind Khanna and Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi, who were BJP nominees who had to face defeat.
Taranjit Singh Sandhu, former Indian Ambassador to Washington and the Saffron nominee from the holy city of Amritsar, suffered a huge loss. The point is that the BJP was contesting these polls on its own, and without any alliance with the Akalis and thus the outcome was on expected lines. Incidentally, the BJP since the Jana Sangh era has never won any seat on its own accord and its party symbol in Punjab. The Sangh Parivar must realize that there was anger in the minds of people and this particular sentiment came to fore during the incident at the Airport, which as stated earlier is indefensible. However, it is equally unjustified to portray the State as extremists. The results, this time, seem to replicate the 1989 outcome when two candidates believed to be believing in separatist ideology have been declared winners. If in 1989, it was Simranjit Singh Mann and Atinder Pal Singh from Tarn Taran and Patiala respectively, it is Amritpal Singh and Sarabjit Singh from Khadoor Saheb and Faridkot in 2024. The victory coincides with the fact that the Sikhs were by and large against the policies of the government and voted for nominees who they believed could help defeat the BJP or send a message of this anger to the Centre.
Normally speaking, there are about four to five Hindus who figure in the list of victors. This time around, barring Patiala and Hoshiarpur, all the remaining winners regardless of which party they represented, are from the Sikh community. Obviously, there is a message in that for those who can read it. Amritpal is now the head of the unknown and insignificant group, Waris Punjab De, founded by Deep Sidhu, the man who hoisted the Nishan Saheb at the Red Fort during the peak of the farmers agitation, and who died in a car crash subsequently. There were many in Punjab who continue to believe that Sidhu like Amritpal had connections with the deep State even though, it is very difficult to establish.
For reasons best known to those, who formulated the policies concerning the Sikhs and the alleged role of separatists, matters do not seem to have worked as imagined or planned. The killings of some Sikh leaders in Canada is already an issue that has been taken seriously by the Canadian and American authorities and is currently under investigation by those countries. The point is about the role of Indian intelligence in their killing since there seem to be voice recording of senior officials which have caused embarrassment to New Delhi. These elections have seen the Sikhs voting to defeat the BJP. However, there is no one who can question their patriotism and nationalism and to attempt and brand the entire community as Khalistani is completely unacceptable. There needs to be rethinking on Punjab and the farm laws. There can be no alienation but course correction that is required.
