Paramjit Kaur Khalra, the widow of slain human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, will not contest the Tarn Taran Assembly bypoll in Punjab or any other elections in the future, as per an announcement made Wednesday by Khalra Mission Organisation (KMO), a human rights body associated with her.
There have been speculations that Paramjit Kaur could be a candidate for the Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) from Tarn Taran after the seat fell vacant due to the death of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Dr Kashmir Singh Sohal on June 26. The bypoll will be held within the next six months.
Tarn Taran is part of the Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha constituency, where radical Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh, currently lodged in Dibrugarh Central Jail in Assam, secured a landslide victory in the 2024 elections as an Independent candidate.
Paramjit Kaur actively campaigned in the Lok Sabha elections for Amritpal, whose supporters floated Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) in January this year.
On Tuesday, Amritpal’s father Tarsem Singh announced that the party will contest the Tarn Taran bypoll, raising rumours of Paramjit Kaur’s candidacy. Earlier, in 2019, she contested the Lok Sabha elections from the Khadoor Sahib seat for the Panjabi Ekta Party, but was unsuccessful, securing 2.14 lakh votes.
The KMO Wednesday stated that Paramjit Kaur contested the Lok Sabha election in 2019 to “expose the sinners and for the betterment of Punjab”. The Sikh Panth extended exceptional support in that effort, it said.
It further said that contesting elections is not a profession for the organisation and that the decision to contest is made only due to special circumstances. The organisation further expressed gratitude to the entire Panth and the people of Punjab for their support and affirmed it will continue to contribute to the struggle against oppression and injustice.
What happened to Jaswant Singh Khalra?
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Jaswant Singh Khalra, who was known for campaigning against the disappearance of thousands of Sikh youths during the Punjab militancy from the 1980s to the 1990s, was kidnapped from his house on September 6, 1995, and tortured to death allegedly at the behest of the then-Punjab Police officers. A Patiala court in 2005 convicted six policemen of his murder and the Supreme Court upheld the verdict in 2011.
KMO, founded by Paramjit Kaur, is known for its efforts in seeking justice for victims of extrajudicial killings.
In 2019, former Army chief General J J Singh decided against contesting from the Khadoor Sahib constituency after many urged him not to contest against Paramjit Kaur, given the sacrifices her husband had made in the fight for human rights.
General Singh was planning to contest for Shiromani Akali Dal (Taksali), a party that no longer exists, as its founder Ranjit Singh Brahmpura had rejoined the SAD’s official fold before his death.
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The division of votes between Paramjit Kaur and SAD candidate Khalra Jagir Kaur led to the comfortable victory of Congress candidate Jasbir Singh Dimpa, the first for the party in almost four decades from Khadoor Sahib. This was also the first defeat for the SAD in the Panthic belt since 1992.
