Khadoor Sahib MLA Imprisoned; AAP Uses Floods to Bring Back Land Pooling

On 12 Sep, a court in Tarn Taran district sentenced Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Khadoor Sahib, Manjinder Singh Lalpura to four years imprisonment in a case of molestation and assault of a woman in 2013. Following the conviction, the MLA and seven others were taken into custody on 10 Sep. Lalpura and others assaulted the complainant Dalit (marginalized caste, name withheld) woman on 3 Mar 2013. The incident took place when the complainant along with her family members came to a marriage venue for a wedding function. At that time, Lalpura was a taxi driver. The Supreme Court of India had taken suo motu cognisance of the case, directing paramilitary force protection for the sufferer and her cousin Jagjit Singh, an eyewitness, and her family members. The sufferer said she had to fight a long and difficult battle against the accused but is now satisfied with the verdict. Lalpura was seen as a rising star in the ruling party. In May, he was appointed AAP Majha (north Panjab) zone vice-president. Meanwhile, after the floods, to help the poor, the Panjab government is setting up a Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) House Project. For this purpose, 6,035 acres of panchayat (common) land have been identified in 62 villages in 12 districts of Panjab. Out of this, the Housing and Urban Development Department has initially selected 13 sites in 12 panchayats of three districts, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar (SAS Nagar), Jalandhar, and Amritsar. However, it will not be easy for the Panjab government to acquire land from the panchayats. The District Commissioner (DC) affixed rate of the lands of the villages of SAS Nagar district, based on which the district-level price fixation committees must fix the price, is very low. The market price of the lands of these villages is ten to fifteen times more than the DC rate. How much the panchayats will be ready to give land, will be known only if the panchayats agree to the government proposal (earlier coverage).