Karanpur goes to polls amid controversy over appointment of BJP candidate as Minister

Karanpur in Rajasthan’s Sriganganagar district will go to polls on January 5 amid a controversy

Karanpur in Rajasthan’s Sriganganagar district will go to polls on January 5 amid a controversy over the appointment of BJP candidate Surendra Pal Singh as a Minister of State during the Cabinet formation last week.

The 2023 Assembly election in Karanpur was postponed following the death of Congress candidate Gurmeet Singh Kooner on November 15.

The election campaign ended on Wednesday with the Opposition Congress launching a blistering attack on the new BJP government for its decision to appoint Mr. Singh as a Minister. The Congress has also submitted a memorandum to the Election Commission seeking Mr. Singh’s disqualification from contesting the polls on the ground of violation of election laws as well as the model code of conduct.

Addressing an election rally in Karanpur, Pradesh Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra said on Tuesday that no portfolios were being allocated to the newly appointed Ministers in the State because all of them had been given the sole task of “saving Surendra Pal Singh”. Mr. Dotasra said Mr. Singh’s appointment was in utter disregard of basic principles of elections, where a level playing field was key.

The Congress has fielded Kooner’s son Rupinder Singh as its candidate ostensibly to get the benefit of sympathy for the departed leader, who was the sitting MLA from Karanpur. In the 2018 Assembly election, three-time MLA Kooner had defeated his nearest rival, Independent candidate Prithipal Singh, by a margin of 28,376 votes, while Mr. Surendra Pal Singh was relegated to the third position.

A total of 12 candidates are in the fray from Karanpur seat. Mr. Prithipal Singh is the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) candidate this time, posing a strong challenge to both Mr. Rupinder Singh and Mr. Surendra Pal Singh. The 67-year-old BJP candidate, who has been a Minister in the past as well, is considered a senior Sikh leader in the region.

Mr. Prithipal Singh’s entry as the AAP candidate seems to have made the contest triangular. AAP State president Naveen Paliwal and senior party leaders from neighbouring Punjab have been camping in the town and interacting with the voters in an attempt to convince them to elect the party’s nominee for the last remaining seat in the Assembly.