which is just one-fourth of the original allocation. What could be the reason behind this?
Review - DEKHO
In our country, a Smart City mission was established to transform 100 cities into world-class cities, but its budget has been reduced from 8,000 crore Rupees to 2,400 crore Rupees
Once entrusted with one of Punjab's most powerful portfolios as Finance Minister and long regarded as one of the state's most influential political leaders, Manpreet Singh Badal has now been appointed as the BJP observer for the Abohar mayoral and Municipal Council president elections. Does this assignment reflect the BJP's confidence in his organisational abilities, or does it highlight how far his political stature has declined over the years ? For a leader who once shaped state-level policy and finances, is supervising local civic elections a role that matches his experience, or a sign that his political journey has taken an unexpected turn ?
कभी पंजाब के सबसे शक्तिशाली विभागों में से एक वित्त मंत्रालय संभालने वाले और राज्य के सबसे प्रभावशाली नेताओं में गिने जाने वाले मनप्रीत सिंह बादल को अब भाजपा ने अबोहर में मेयर और नगर परिषद अध्यक्ष के चुनावों के लिए पर्यवेक्षक नियुक्त किया है। क्या यह जिम्मेदारी उनकी संगठनात्मक क्षमताओं पर भाजपा के भरोसे को दिखाती है, या फिर यह बताती है कि वर्षों में उनका राजनीतिक कद कितना बदल चुका है ? जो नेता कभी पंजाब की आर्थिक नीतियों और वित्तीय फैसलों को दिशा देता था, क्या उसके अनुभव के अनुरूप स्थानीय निकाय चुनावों की निगरानी करना है, या यह उनके राजनीतिक सफर के एक अप्रत्याशित मोड़ का संकेत है ?
As Punjab moves towards the 2027 Assembly elections, political parties are once again intensifying their outreach to influential deras such as Dera Sachkhand Ballan, Dera Sacha Sauda and Radha Soami Satsang Beas. From high-profile visits and public honours to symbolic gestures and strategic meetings, every major party appears eager to secure their goodwill. The question is: Are Punjab's elections ultimately decided more by political campaigns or by the influence of these powerful deras ? If every major party seeks the blessings of the same spiritual institutions, does that reflect the enduring power of dera politics, or the inability of political parties to win elections on governance alone ? And in a democracy driven by voters, should any religious or spiritual institution continue to hold such decisive electoral influence ?
