Parvesh Sharma
Being the only Muslim-majority town of Punjab, the politics of Malerkotla has always been point of discussion. Cabinet Minister and MLA Razia Sultana is ready with her list of achievements, while her opponents are focusing on her unfulfilled promises.
Razia has been reminding the voters about the hard work she’s put in to get Malerkotla elevated to the district status and get a Government Medical College for the area. “We have fulfilled all our poll promises… We will win this time too as voters
are satisfied with our work,” said Mohammad Mustafa, Razia’s husband and former Punjab DGP.
But even as development works continue, many areas face drainage issues during monsoon. Frequent traffic jams have been a source of nuisance for locals. Besides, there are Muslim families whose members are married in Pakistan and are facing problems in getting the visa. “We aren’t able to visit our relatives… The state should take up our cases with the Centre for a special policy to grant speedy visas,” said a local woman.
Past trend
In the past seven elections, the Congress has won four times and the Shiromani Akali Dal thrice. Being a Muslim-majority constituency, voters here exercise their franchise after analysing the policies of both the central and state governments.
Electorate strength
Total voters 1,47,827
Male 78,830
Female 68,997
Third gender 0
Dist now, but poor drainage a bane
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