The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has decided to approach Punjab and Haryana high court to protect our democratic right to vote...

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has decided to approach Punjab and Haryana high court to protect our democratic right to vote and contest in the polls which was virtually denied in the just concluded Zila Parishad and  Samiti polls  which were rigged on large scale by the Congress goons sponsored by legislators and ministers under police protection.. Speaking to media persons at the party HQs, party’s general secretary Bikram Sigh Majithia and senior vice president Dr. Daljeet Singh Cheema revealed that as per preliminary reports, 62 polling booths have been captured besides Congress men resorting to bogus voting, large scale violence and threatening the presiding officers with their muscle power.

Congress leaders had stormed the booth and he was a helpless spectator: Majithia

“ Such was wide spread mayhem that 90 years old former Punjab chief minister Parkash Siingh had to rush polling booths in his constituency where the presiding officers confirmed before media that Congress leaders had stormed the booth and he was a helpless spectator”, said  Majithia. The Akali leaders said that the State Election Commission has forfeited his authority as he miserably failed to conduct free and fair elections and had little control of the state machinery and police apparatus which let itself to be abused under the Congress ministers. In the process of booth capturing, the Congress musclemen hit at Akali workers and others who dared to resist and at resorted to firing in Dullewal village in Bathinda district where a  girl was seriously injured and hospitalized in precarious  condition while Congress goon hit an Akali worker and caused grievous head injury.

The duo deciphered a well planned and coordinated pattern in the hijacking of poll through violence and booth capturing though out the state which confirmed that the strategy was planned at highest level and it was neither sporadic nor casual or localized. Explaining the modus operandi of booth capturing, the Akali duo said that the Congress groups led by ministers, legislators or Congress leaders descended on the polling booths in large numbers to cast large number of bogus votes and then the herd would move to other booth and used violence if there were any resistance from Akalis or any common voter.

Majithia said one returning officer was caught on video camera stamping ballot papers

Shockingly, Majithia said one returning officer was caught on video camera stamping ballot papers in favour of Congress and the video has gone viral but the state election commission failed to take cognizance of these developments. In Dera Bassi , the ballot papers  received by the presiding officer were already stamped in favour of Congress. This scared away the voters, especially women and senior citizens, from the booths, said duo adding that this is clearly reflected in the low voters’ turn out. Besides booth capturing, large number of Congress men were caught attempting to cast bogus voting but instead of hauling them up, the police quietly let them skip.