Batala: The other day, Dr Satnam Singh Nijjar, chairman, Gurdaspur District Planning Board, produced a rare picture of the London-Calcutta-London bus service. He said last week he was rummaging through his belongings when he found the photograph gifted to his late father by a friend who had actually travelled in the bus. Dr Nijjar recalls his father telling him the bus service had started in 1957. “At the time, it was considered to be the longest bus route in the world and took 50 days for a one-way trip. The fare was pegged at pound;85. With air travel becoming more and more popular, the service was discontinued in 1976. The service was operated by a UK-based company called Albert Travels,” said Dr Nijjar.
Fallen flag
Qadian: Days after Rajya Sabha MP Partap Singh Bajwa’s sibling Fateh Jung Bajwa left the Congress and joined the BJP in a huff, he positioned the saffron party’s flag atop his Qadian house. Incidentally, both estranged brothers live in the same house, with Partap occupying the first floor and Fateh the ground floor. There were many doubting Thomases who claimed the flag would not stay for long because “a Congress man also lived in the same house”. As luck would have it, a burst of rain coupled with high-velocity winds flatted the flag. Fateh, with due respect, carefully rolled the flag and kept it in a corner of his house. Nobody for sure knows when it will be restored to its original glory.
Shifting base twice
Ferozepur: After four-time MLA Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, who was earlier dropped from the Cabinet ostensibly due to his proximity to former CM Capt Amarinder Singh, left the Congress to join the saffron bandwagon, Jalalabad MLA Raminder Awla overnight shifted base to Guruharsahai with lock, stock and barrel, hoping to secure party nomination from his native town. However, within a few days, the Congress leadership asked him to move back to Jalalabad. Though it’s still not clear whether this “rich” legislator who earlier defeated SAD in Sukhbir Badal’s bastion will be fielded or not, the “no entry” approach of the party has left the MLA and his supporters “guessing” as to what went wrong.
Star-struck voters
Mansa: There is a rush among youngsters these days to meet and get clicked with Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala, who is busy campaigning in the Mansa Assembly segment. Moosewala is contesting on the Congress ticket. At each of his meetings, youngsters wait patiently for his address to finish and later swarm him for a selfie. The singer is often seen obliging them before heading off to his next public meeting.
Seeking divine intervention
Moga: With polls round the corner, candidates and ticket aspirants from various parties are looking for divine intervention as they make a beeline for places of worship and even sects. From ‘ardaas’ to ‘havans’, they are pulling out all the stops to ensure success in the polls. Actor Sonu Sood’s sister and Congress nominee Malvika Sood is no exception as she visited a local shrine as well as Gita Bhawan recently. SAD candidate Barjinder Singh, alias Makhan Brar, has also been visiting gurdwaras lately. AAP nominee Dr Amandeep Kaur Arora too paid obeisance at Salasar Dham and a few other local shrines recently. It seems apart from going door to door to canvass, visiting a shrine in the area has become a necessity for leaders.
Unique bus service
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