Bring On That Patiala Peg

Simmering discontent in the Congress, an aggressive Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), 바카라�conspiratorial cabals바카라� of the Shiromani ­Akali Dal (SAD) and a whiff of rev­olt in the largely-missing BJP바카라�the battle for Punjab has become as colourful as its famous Phulkari and as potent as the Patiala peg.

While wisecracks by Navjot Singh Sidhu and Bhagwant Mann have livened up the political landscape with their irreverent swipes against their opponents, contenders like General J.J. Singh and Sukhbir Singh Badal are scraping the wounds of militancy and Operation Bluestar, when army tanks rolled into Amritsar바카라�s Golden Temple with Congress at the helm. The green-and-yellow mustard fields of Punjab have certainly not witnessed this kind of a three-way election before. With polling scheduled on February 4, all the parties are preparing for the last-mile dash.

Sensing an anti-incumbency mood aga­inst the Akali government, AAP is going all guns blazing, raising the issues of rampant drug abuse and corruption in the state. Party chief Arvind Kejriwal has pulled out all the stops to expand his footprint beyond Delhi and consolidate AAP바카라�s position in the Punjab electoral landscape, where the party won four of the 13 Lok Sabha seats in 2014바카라�its very first general election. AAP is targeting four lakh voters every day in an extensive door-to-door campaign, focusing on the Malwa belt, making it perhaps the most decisive factor in the elections. And yet the Badals of the ruling SAD, having latched on to the insider (Punjabi) versus the outsider (Haryanvi) narrative to corner AAP, have dubbed him 바카라�an outsider and an opportunist바카라� flirting with pro-Khalistan elements. From the Punjabi Suba plank to the Sutlej-Yamuna Link canal, the Akalis are raking up all possible issues that divide Punjabis from Haryanvis.

Invoking Punjabi pride, Akali Dal MP Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa tells Outlook that 바카라�Punjabis fought for a separate Punjabi Suba, so they will never ­tolerate an outsider, and that too a Haryanvi, as their chief minister.바카라� Even though Kejriwal had dismissed the speculation that he will be AAP바카라�s chief ministerial face, the Akalis are not willing to stop harping on the issue.

바카라�The Akalis are clutching at straws,바카라� says an AAP leader. 바카라�They know it is a losing battle this time and are using as many div­ersionary tactics as possible. At the same time, we will not make the mistake of und­erestimating them. Their rural votebank is still strong, especially in Doaba and Majha. They have resources and they know how to use them. And money is flowing too.바카라�

For the Congress, the entry of Sidhu바카라�contesting from Amritsar East constituency바카라�may draw crowds for rallies and meetings, but it has also complicated matters for the party that had not yet declared a CM candidate. Strategist Prashant Kishor, working with Captain Amarinder Singh, had been carefully cultivating his image as the party바카라�s de facto CM face. Campaigns like 바카라�Coffee with Captain바카라� to target the youth voters and 바카라�Captain Smart Connect Scheme바카라� to distribute smartphones among them were launched to give heft to Amarinder바카라�s status. However, the Congress fell short of officially declaring him as the CM candidate due to the widespread opposition against him within the party.

Party sources say workers on the ground are agitated. 바카라�Punjab is the only state among those going to polls where the Congress has a fair chance of forming the government,바카라� says a senior Congress leader, not wanting to be identified. 바카라�The problem is that nobody in the party high command really understands the ­nuances of Punjab. Those who know the state do not have much of a say. Even former prime minister Mamohan Singh is not being consulted. I just hope that Congress doesn바카라�t end up losing a winning match.바카라�

Amarinder, though, seems undeterred and carries on in his inimitable Maharaja style. Publicly dec­laring that he is contesting his last election, he is giving it his all. Talking to Outlook after filing nomination papers, Amarinder was in a combative mood. 바카라�Jats love a good fight and I am raring to go,바카라� he said. 바카라�This is my last election and that is why I want to end it at Patiala. And I am fighting in Lambi because I want to teach this man (Parkash Singh Badal) a lesson.바카라�

When SAD fielded former army chief Gen J.J. Singh to take him on in his home turf Patiala, Amarinder grandly declared that a captain will defeat a general for the first time. In Lambi, where he is taking on chief minister Badal on his home turf, he claimed he was going to 바카라�cook Badal바카라�s goose바카라� because he has ruined the state.

As Amarinder filed his nomination ­papers on January 18, the last day for filing nominations, he rued the fact that property prices had come down during Badal바카라�s rule. 바카라�Even the worth of my palace has gone down by half,바카라� he told reporters.

However, what has surprised political observers is that amid all this drama and hectic activity, SAD바카라�s ally in the government, the BJP, has been keeping an ­uncharacteristically low profile. The only upheaval in the party was seen when it declared candidates for 23 of the 117 ­assembly seats it will contest in Punjab. BJP state president and Union minister Vijay Sampla threatened to quit since he was believed to be unhappy about ticket distribution. Though he later denied he wanted to resign, BJP sources say Sampla changed his tune after he was given a dressing down by party president Amit Shah for public display of dissatisfaction.

Meanwhile, the Akalis are also believed to be miffed with the BJP for its hands-off approach. Sources close to the Badals say the ruling family is extremely disappointed as the BJP is not lending a hand in campaigning. 바카라�The BJP seems to have abandoned the Akalis when they are down. A few rallies by the senior BJP leaders and maybe one or two by Prime Minister Narendra Modi can change the complexion,바카라� an Akali leader tells Outlook.

As soon as the BJP started getting negative feedback about the incumbent government a year ago, it started pulling itself back. Amit Shah started openly claiming that his party was merely a 바카라�junior partner바카라� in the Akali-led government when allegations were made about drug abuse, corruption and increasing unemployment. 바카라�This was enough of a signal for the other party workers that they need not invest too much in the state,바카라� reveals a BJP leader.

Moreover, the RSS too has not been keen on continuing the alliance with the Akalis. 바카라�The Sangh wanted the BJP to contest all the seats on its own,바카라� a BJP leader lets on. 바카라�Being a border state, it affected the security of the entire country바카라�that was the Sangh바카라�s rationale. The Sangh was also unhappy with reports of the resurgence of the Khalistan slogans and that some senior politicians were involved in drug trade.바카라� According to him, Modi might just address 바카라�one or two바카라� rallies in the state, but nothing has been decided so far. The prime minister, incidentally, is scheduled to address a rally in Manipur, which goes to polls on March 4.

Even though the Badals are battling anti-­incumbency, an unhelpful ally and hostility from a large section of Punjabis, their rivals are not writing them off. 바카라�They are quite capable of a last-minute ambush,바카라� claims a cautious AAP leader.