Ludhiana: Amid the defeat of Congress candidate Bharat Bhushan Ashu, who lost the Ludhiana West bypoll to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate by over 10,000 votes, a post by the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee President Amrinder Singh Raja Warring became a talking point. His official Facebook page showed the victory sign with his picture. Warring uploaded the post at around 1:04pm on Monday, by which time the AAP candidate’s victory was almost assured. Although the post was deleted four minutes later, over 100 people had liked it by then.Prior to this, Warring faced backlash on poll day when he, through a Facebook post, appealed to people of Ludhiana West to go out and cast their votes. However, he did not specify who to vote for. In the comment section, people criticised him for not seeking votes for the Congress or its candidate, Bharat Bhushan Ashu.The rift between Ashu and Warring is not lost on anyone. They have often been seen avoiding each other. After the MC elections in February this year, Warring visited the city to meet winning councillors, party workers, and leaders. However, Ashu skipped Warring’s meeting that day. Later, when Ashu was announced the bypoll candidate, Warring visited Ashu’s residence but returned without meeting him as he was not home. While Warring claimed that prior information had been given to Ashu about his visit, Ashu claimed that he had not been informed.Warring did not join Ashu and his team during the election campaign too. Although he visited the city thrice, he was seen sharing the stage with Ashu only once. They were seen together only when Ashu filed his nomination. Besides, Warring held a press conference in Ludhiana when the Vigilance Bureau issued a summons to Ashu; however, the PC was organised without Ashu. A few days before poll day, Warring, along with leader of opposition (LOP) Partap Singh Bajwa, joined Punjab in-charge Bhupesh Baghel for a press conference, in which Ashu was absent.When Ashu was asked about Warring’s post with a victory sign, Ashu said, “I have not seen any such post. But, if someone made any such post, it is because of his narrow-mindedness.” Despite repeated attempts, Raja Warring was not available for comment. MSID:: 122028520 413 |
