14112026-JTR-01.qxd 11/13/2026 11:37 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune POOR CONDITION OF WASHROOMS AT TEHSIL COMPLEX FLAGGED APRA TAKES CHARGE AS PHILLAUR MARKET COMMITTEE CHIEF SINGER DILJIT TOUCHES FEET OF PUERTO RICAN SINGER’S MOTHER Ex-Phagwara Mayor Arun Khosla urges the authorities to ensure cleaning and repairs of the washrooms. P2 Sukhdeep Singh Apra earlier served as the constituency in-charge of the AAP in Phillaur. P2 Diljit Dosanjh touches the feet of Puerto Rican singer Daddy Yankee’s mother at the Latin Grammys. P4 » » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 29°C | MIN 17°C YESTERDAY MAX 30°C | MIN 19°C SUNSET SATURDAY 5.29 PM SUNRISE SUNDAY 6:54 AM SATURDAY | 14 NOVEMBER 2026 | JALANDHAR Arora: Don’t mistake my silence for weakness Two arrested in Mothanwal firing over extortion bid MLA alleges he was deliberately framed in corruption case Demanded ~50 lakh from chemist Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service Nitin Gupta Nannu, Tikshan Sood and others honour Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini during his visit to Hoshiarpur. Saini: BJP alone can ensure state’s growth Our Correspondent Hoshiarpur, November 13 Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini today said all-round development of Punjab was possible only if the BJP formed the government in the state. He claimed that states governed by the BJP-led double-engine governments had witnessed rapid development. Addressing a BJP rally in Hoshiarpur, Saini said Punjab had once been among the leading states, but its condition had deteriorated due to the wrong policies of successive governments. Haryana Cabinet Minister Ranbir Singh Gangwa was also present on the occasion. Before addressing the rally, Saini welcomed Aam Aadmi Party leader Ravinder Sharma, who joined the BJP along with his supporters. He said he shared a close bond with Punjab, particularly Hoshiarpur, and felt fortunate to visit the city known for its association with saints. Targeting the Congress and the AAP Saini alleged that , their governments had pushed Punjab into a quagmire of corruption. Both parties had promised to free the youth from drug addiction. Jalandhar, November 13 A day after the Aam Aadmi Party released its second list of candidates for the Assembly polls, replacing Jalandhar Central MLA Raman Arora with industrialist Nitin Kohli, the MLA told the media that his silence against all kinds of pressure tactics should not be construed as his weakness. Speaking for the first time since he had been booked by the Vigilance Bureau in a corruption case in May 2025, Arora said he had been deliberately framed by a group of individuals. “I was wrongly implicated. Three to five people laid a trap around me. I will reveal everything at the right time. I have enough evidence to substantiate my claims. Some people wanted to sideline me and replace me with their favourites. During my tenure as an MLA, I have seen a much dirtier side of politics,” he said. Describing himself as a God-fearing person from an ordinary middle-class family, Arora said public sentiment Chaos at MC House meeting Ashok Kaura PHAGWARA, NOVEMBER 13 The MC House meeting, chaired by Mayor Rampal Uppal today, witnessed heated exchanges after Congress councillors staged a dharna on the floor of the House, protesting against “increasing corruption and the Mayor’s dictatorial style of functioning”. Congress councillors Sanjeev Bugga, Taranjit Singh Walia and Jatinder Vermani objected to the conduct of the proceedings. Led by Bugga, the protesting councillors alleged that the Mayor was ignoring the views of elected representatives and pushing agenda items without taking the House into confidence. They also questioned the Mayor’s repeated claims that all agenda items had been passed unanimously, asserting that there was no consensus on several matters and that their objections were not being given due consideration. Despite the noisy protests and objections raised by the Congress councillors, Uppal said all eight agenda items had been passed unanimously. The contrasting claims over the manner in which the resolutions were adopted became a major point of confrontation during the meeting. Bugga also levelled serious allegations of corruption and demanded accountability over MC’s functioning. MC Commissioner Randeep Singh Heer remained present during the proceedings. Apart from the political confrontation, the House had several significant administrative and civic matters on its agenda, including the proposed regularisation of outsourced employees, municipal property issues, fire brigade staffing and a major sewerage infrastructure project. The employment-related agenda covered the scrutiny of 134 outsourced employees and a separate batch of 83 personnel. Their cases had been examined by the officelevel screening committee in accordance with the state legislation and prescribed eligibility conditions, including the May 30 cut-off date. The matter was placed before the House for consideration, with eligibility subject to verification of service records and applicable government instructions.The agenda also included a municipal property dispute involving shops numbered 666 and 486 and plot number 34. AAP MLA Raman Arora was named in graft case in Jalandhar. FILE had begun shifting in his favour as evidence supporting his version surfaced. “Audio recordings and other material have emerged that show how I was trapped. People have started expressing support for me. That is why my name topped several surveys, particularly those conducted by independent media. Even then, I did not ask for a ticket. I want to continue serving the people, though not necessarily as their political leader. There are other ways to do that,” he said. This afternoon, he also took to social media where he posted, “How powerful must that person be against whom people need to gang up on just to humiliate him.” This way, he further tried to make the same point. He, however, did not name anyone who laid trap around him. Even before his arrest, AAP leader and now Jalandhar Cantt halqa in-charge Deepak Bali had started calling shots in Jalandhar Central. However, AAP Punjab incharge Manish Sisodia handed over the post of halqa incharge to Nitin Kohli instead of Bali. Bali was then adjusted with posts like party’s general secretary. Prior to that, he was already serving as the adviser to the Punjab Tourism and Heritage Promotion Board. Even after Arora’s release from the jail about a year ago, the party continued to get all development works done through Kohli. He was not seen at any public events of the Aam Aadmi Party for the whole year. He even skipped several sessions in the Vidhan Sabha, attending the last two. Arora was given two gunmen also but he sent them back after an attempt was made to stall the bhajan event of Kanhaiya Mittal that he was organising. Arora has himself been a bhajan singer, before jumping into politics. Arora got two gunman back but not the ticket. Our Correspondent Kapurthala, November 13 The CIA, Kapurthala, and Sultanpur Lodhi police have arrested two accused for their alleged involvement in an extortion bid, targeting a medical store owner and firing at his residence in village Mothanwal after he failed to pay Rs 50 lakh. The accused have been identified as Gurchet Singh, alias Cheta of Bhim Kadim, Kapurthala, who allegedly rode the motorcycle, and Mandeep Singh, alias Goli, of Chak Kotla, who opened fire. The police have also recovered two country-made .30 bore pistols and a motorcycle, allegedly used in the crime. Addressing a news conference, SSP Gaurav Toora, along with SP (Investigation) Harinder Singh Gill and ASP Dheerendra Verma, said on Friday that on October 23, the owner of the medical store received an extortion demand of Rs 50 lakh through a foreign WhatsApp number. When the complainant failed to pay the amount, unidentified persons opened fire at his residence to intimidate him. He said an FIR was registered on October 28. The SSP further said special police teams were constituted to crack the case. With the help of technical and human intelligence, the police traced the accused and arrested both of them. During investigation, the police also recovered two country-made .30 bore pistols and the motorcycle allegedly used in the crime. The investigation revealed that Mandeep had allegedly conducted a recce and collected information about the complainant, which he shared with Yadvinder Singh of Chamba Kalan, Tarn Taran district, who is currently settled abroad. Yadvinder had allegedly demanded Rs 50 lakh as extortion money. Acting on his directions, Gurchet Singh and Mandeep Singh allegedly opened fire at the complainant’s residence. Can Dhir succeed where city former Mayors failed? AAP candidate from North seeks to buck the trend of ex-mayors falling short in Assembly polls Aakanksha N Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 13 Mayor Vaneet Dhir has emerged as the AAP candidate from the Jalandhar North Assembly constituency, with his name featuring in the party’s second list of candidates released on November 12. Having already been active in the constituency after being appointed its halqa in-charge, Dhir is now gearing up for the electoral battle. Dhir, who has also maintained an active presence on social media, is confident of winning the seat, claiming that people are looking for a change. However, he faces a challenge from sitting Congress MLA Bawa Henry, who enjoys a strong political presence in the constituency and has consistently raised and addressed local issues. “I am 100 per cent sure that I will win from Jalandhar North. There are many issues, particularly related to development, which I am now working to address,” Dhir said. With Dhir entering the electoral fray, the spotlight has again turned to former Jalandhar mayors who tried their luck in the Assembly elections but could not make it to the Vidhan Sabha. One of the prominent names is former Mayor Jagdish Raja, who was once among the most vocal leaders in the Congress and a close associate of former MLA Rajinder Beri. Raja later joined AAP around two years ago. He subsequently contested the councillor’s elec- Mayor Vaneet Dhir tion from his ward but failed to retain his seat. Since then, he has largely remained away from active political engagements. Raja, talking to The Tribune, said, “I was supposed to get the MLA ticket, but that did not happen. Howev- er, I will continue to work for the AAP he said. ,” Senior Congress leader Balraj Thakur recalled that even Jalandhar’s first mayor Jai Kishan had contested an Assembly election as an Independent candidate but failed to win. Former Mayor Suresh Sehgal also tried his luck from the Jalandhar North constituency after completing his mayoral tenure in 2002. However, he lost the election to the Congress by a narrow margin. “I remained Mayor until 2002. After my tenure ended, I contested from Jalandhar North but lost to the Congress by a very narrow margin,” Sehgal said. Sehgal, who is now associated with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), also made a strong pitch for an alliance between the BJP and SAD, saying both parties must set aside their differences in the larger interest of Punjab. “My request to both the BJP and SAD is to come together and leave their egos aside. If they want to protect Punjab, they must form an alliance. This is the right time and it should happen now,” he said. Meanwhile, former Mayor Rakesh Rathour of the BJP is also reportedly keen on contesting the Assembly elections, with Jalandhar Central emerging as his preferred constituency. As Dhir prepares to take on the electoral challenge in Jalandhar North, it will be interesting to watch if he will be able to make it to Vidhan Sabha. 20 ghats being readied as city gears up for Chhath Puja 3 more held for Guru Rishika Kriti Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 13 With over 2.5 lakh devotees expected to celebrate Chhath Puja in Jalandhar, the authorities have started setting up and readying nearly 20 ghats across the city to accommodate the large turnout. As part of the celebrations, devotees will gather at these water bodies to offer prayers to the Sun on November 15 and 16. Parmod Kumar Yadav of the Purvanchal Vikas Mahasabha, said, “The authorities had designated 20 ghats across Jalandhar, including those at Beant Singh Park, Kapurthala Road, Gadaipur, Devi Talab, Burlton Park among others. Preparations are underway at these sites with cleaning, desilting and installation of lighting arrangements being carried out to ensure convenience and safety for devotees.” He added that the authori- Ahead of the Chhath Puja, the authorities during a cleanliness drive of a canal in Jalandhar. TRIBUNE PHOTO: MALKIAT SINGH ties had also stepped up security arrangements with police personnel planned to be deployed at the designated locations. “Additionally, our teams of the Purvanchal Vikas Mahasabha will also keep a vigil during the festival to assist devotees and ensure that help is available to them whenever required,” Yadav added. To ensure adequate water availability at all earmaked c m y b ghats ahead of the festival, the Irrigation Department has also begun releasing water into these sites. Davinder Singh, Execu- tive Engineer (XEN), Irrigation Department, said the department had started releasing water into the ghats from Friday morning to facilitate the rituals. AAP leader Sushil Tiwari visited the Chhath Puja celebration venue at Beant Singh Park, opposite Focal Point Sabzi Mandi on Friday, and reviewed the preparations with members of the Chhath Puja Committee. He assured the committee that the government will extend all possible support to ensure the smooth conduct of the festival. The committee members briefed him on the arrangements and invited city residents to participate in the celebrations with their families. Chhath Puja is a four-day significant Hindu festival commencing from November 13. The festival, dedicated to Lord Surya and Chhathi Maiya, is celebrated predominantly in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand. Nanak Nagar firing Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 13 The city police on Friday arrested three more persons in connection with the Guru Nanak Nagar firing incident, days after arresting the complainant for allegedly misleading investigators. Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Manpreet Singh said complainant Sahil was arrested three days ago after the police found that the firing was not linked to a parking dispute, as initially claimed. “The complainant had concocted a false story about a fight over a parking issue and misled the police. The actual motive was an ongoing rivalry with another Sahil, originally from Garha Road and currently residing in the US,” the DCP said. According to the police, complainant Sahil, who is facing a murder case, had met his namesake in Kapurthala jail. The two later developed differences, following which the US-based Sahil allegedly conspired to eliminate him. “Acting on his instructions, three associates armed with firearms were sent to Sahil’s residence in Guru Nanak Nagar,” Manpreet Singh said. The police have arrested Jashan Singh, Jagjit Singh and Amarinder Singh, all residents of Baba Bakala, for their alleged role in the firing. The DCP said five to six rounds were fired at Sahil’s car during the incident. “The accused will be produced before a court and taken on police remand for further investigation,” he added.