Dressed in white and sporting a saffron scarf, BJP candidate from West Delhi parliamentary constituency, Pravesh Sahib Singh Verma is campaigning hard. He was in Hari Nagar, Tilak Nagar, Rajouri Garden, Madipur and Janakpuri Assembly constituencies and addressed corner meetings in his bid to connect with the people.
A Jat by caste, Pravesh is going all out to woo the Punjabi and Sikh electorate whose vote will be crucial in the final outcome of this important seat. Pravesh stops at every Gurdwara to offer prayers, accepts garlands and speaks to members of the community as his cavalcade comprising five cars moves from one colony to another. While addressing small groups of people in various localities, Parvesh refers to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots that saw thousands being butchered on Delhi roads and promises setting up an “SIT to investigate the riots at the Central Government level”.
Pravesh with his supporters in tow at Janakpuri district park tried to connect with the morning walkers. He went to Khajan Basti-Mayapuri and Keshav Vihar slum cluster and asked people to vote for him to support BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi as the country needed an “administrator like Modi to resuscitate a winded economy and generate more employment”. Addressing people, he recalled his father late Sahib Singh Verma’s contribution towards the organised sector during NDA regime when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister of the country. He said the programme was not implemented by the UPA Government.
His cavalcade headed to Tilak Vihar colony where he met families of 1984 anti-Sikh riots and assured that if NDA Government came to power, all those responsible for the 1984 riots would not be spared. Following Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) decision to form an SIT to investigate the riots during its short stint in Delhi Government, Parvesh felt it was important to expose the fledgling party riding on momentum. “They (AAP) are misinforming people about an SIT formed by Delhi Government. No SIT has been formed till date. I want to assure you that the Central Government will form an SIT and the guilty will be brought to book,” said Parvesh, addressing a gathering in Tilak Vihar colony.
Pravesh also went to Shaheed Ganj Gurudwara to offer a prayer. He was also offered a saropa by the Sikh community. He spent most of his time interacting with families of riot victims. “His father (late BJP leader and former Sahib Singh Verma) had saved my family during the 1984 riots. He protected us from the rioters and gave us food. I can never forget what his family did for us during those testing times. I request you all to vote for him (Parvesh),” said Kultar Singh.
Though Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) is canvassing for him, he continues to be an outsider in the Sikh-dominated areas. The AAP’s candidate, Jarnail Singh, who hurled a shoe at P Chidambaram for his party’s inaction in the 1984 riots, has found greater acceptability in these areas. “Sikhs associate with him (Jarnail) as he is from our community and also for his derring-do. The BJP doesn’t have a local presence. They don’t have any Sikh leader,” says MS Puri, a CNG kit dealer.
Interacting with people on his roadshow, he also rode a scooter on his campaign in Hari Nagar. While he might have to try hard to win the support of Sikhs, the Punjabi community is divided over extending support to him. In fact, many dismiss AAP as an option at the national level. However, octogenarian Kulbhushan Chawla, a resident of Tilak Nagar, feels there could be surprises from the constituency. “People are still making up their mind and are divided between AAP and BJP. While some want to give Modi a chance, the Kejriwal factor had also worked with the masses here,” Chawla said. Another resident Sandeep Gulati echoed his views saying people have little or no hope from the Congress and that Modi might play an important factor in the area, adding a few just might support Jarnail Singh too.
All these constituencies — Janakpuri, Hari Nagar, Tilak Nagar, Rajouri Garden — are Punjabi dominated areas and Parvesh is making all effort to woo the people of this community. Though SAD (Badal) is campaigning for him, it would be a litmus test for Parvesh to splice Punjabi voters since a majority of them are predisposed to AAP candidate Jarnail Singh whose claim to fame was hurling a shoe at the then Union Home Minister in 2009 to protest against the clean chit given by CBI to Congress leader HKl Bhagat and a Congress ticket to Sajjan Kumar.
