Early Times Report
Jammu, Nov 10: The Dogra Swabhiman Sangathan has suffered a major setback, as all of its members, who contested against candidates of BJP for elections to municipal committees of district Kathua, have lost.
The Sangathan had nominated three candidates in three municipalities of district Kathua including Lakhanpur MC, Nagri Parole MC and MC Kathua.
The fight was between the members of the Sangthan and BJP, but the BJP swept all the seats of chairman. In the Lakhanpur MC, three members close to the Sangathan had won from various wards and BJP also had three ward members. There was only one independent candidate, Surmudin, and the local ward members backed by DSS as well as its senior leaders tried their best to bring him into party fold but in vain.
The BJP managed the show and got Surmudin into the party fold and made him chairman while Darshan Singh got only three votes and was defeated.
Similar was the case in Nagri Parole MC, where Anil Singh Andotra of the Sangathan was contesting against the BJP candidate.
Anil Singh Andotra was office bearer of PDP and had left the party to join the Sangathan. Out of 13 ward members, BJP's candidate Shashi Kanta managed 8 votes while Sangathan leader Anil Singh Andotra got only 5 votes.
In the elections of chairman of Kathua MC, the fight was between Rajinder Singh Babbi, the brother of Sangathan leader Choudhary Lal Singh and Naresh Sharma, a former Congressman who had recently joined BJP. Out of total 21 votes, Naresh Sharma of BJP managed 15 votes while brother of Lal Singh got only 6 votes and lost the elections.
"Though Sangathan has decided to fight Panchayat elections also on their own and have given mandate to some members, with the rout of their members in the elections of municipalities, there are bleak possibilities of any good news for the Sangathan members even in Panchayats", a politician said. |
