JALANDHAR: Former Punjab and Maharashtra DGP S S Virk — who was removed by the Election Commission in early 2007 from the post of Punjab DGP and was arrested by the Punjab Vigilance bureau under the Prevention of Corruption Act also in 2007 when he was repatriated to his parent cadre, the Maharashtra police — has applied for a Congress ticket from Dasuya for the Assembly elections.
In 2007, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had accused Virk of being aligned with the then ruling Congress. Virk sent his application to the district Congress committee in Hoshiarpur on Wednesday after the state Congress unit had asked ticket aspirants to submit their applications through these committees.
With this, the khaki force would have a predominant presence in the election as two more former DGPs have expressed their interest in testing the political waters this time. While Virk is interested in a Congress ticket, recently-retired Punjab DGP P S Gill and a former DGP (prisons) Mohammad Izhar Alam want SAD tickets from Moga and Malerkotla respectively.
District Congress committee Hoshiarpur president Sunder Sham Arora confirmed that he has received Virk’s application. Virk’s visits to the area had increased over the past few months.
In the 2007 Assembly elections, Ramesh Chander Dogra of Congress lost the constituency to BJP’s Amarjit Sahi. Virk originally hails from Dasuya district and several of his kin are scattered in the constituency.
It is learnt that state Congress chief Amarinder Singh was keen on Virk’s candidature. It was during his tenure that Amarinder had gone out of his way to elevate him as DGP. Virk was removed from his post by the EC following a spate of complaints by SAD, which was in the Opposition then.
After Amarinder government lost power in 2007, Virk shifted to his parent cadre Maharashtra. He was arrested by Punjab Vigilance Bureau from Maharashtra Bhawan in Delhi after the VB registered a case under Prevention of Corruption Act against him for possessing disproportionate assets and allegedly doing business while in service. He was admitted to PGI for more than a month.
While the three former DGPs are yet to get tickets, Razia Sultana, the wife of a serving ADGP, is already a Congress MLA and set to get the party ticket again. Gill’s candidature from Moga is facing opposition from within the SAD, and although, Alam has already been appointed constituency incharge from Muslim- dominated Malerkotla, he is being opposed by Damdami Taksal-led Sant Samaj.
SAD had been projecting Alam as someone who had succeeded in countering ADGP Mohd Mustafa “who is handling Malerkotla through the proxy as his wife Razia Sultana is Congress MLA”.
Virk, who flew to Maharashtra on Wednesday morning, was not available for comments as his cell phones remained switched off.
