Jalandhar: Former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, who holds a PhD in Political Science with a thesis on the Congress party, has now decided to do a Master’s in Economics to understand his state’s economy.
His goal is to gain a deeper understanding of Punjab’s economy, particularly the balance between providing freebies and fostering economic growth. “I want to understand — can giving freebies to the people be balanced with economic growth. I want to study this in the context of Punjab,” the former CM said in an interview with ThePrint.
For this, “I will be doing an MA in economics now,” said Channi, a Congress candidate from the reserved Jalandhar seat.
Punjab, which has 13 Lok Sabha seats, is bracing for a competitive four-way contest featuring the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on 1 June.
Channi, 61, studied law at Panjab University, Chandigarh, and then went on to do an MBA in human resource management from the IK Gujral Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar.
He also holds a Master’s in Political Science degree followed by a PhD in the same subject focusing on the Indian National Congress. He was awarded his PhD degree during the 70th convocation of the Panjab University held last year.
In September 2021, Channi made history as Punjab’s first Dalit chief minister, succeeding Amarinder Singh, who was unceremoniously removed by the Congress high command. Though this move was hailed nationally, it did not bring any electoral benefit to the party in Punjab.
“It was a very short duration (three months) to be of any consequence. The people of Punjab had made up their minds and wanted to bring about a change. They (AAP) convinced the people that a revolution was coming and successfully created a wave in their favour. People now regret their mistake,” Channi claimed.
He went on to add that the people have now realised that AAP “is not filled with revolutionaries but traitors.” “I did as much work as was possible in those three months. I tried to do three years’ worth of work within that time. But the people had already made up their minds and, hence, not much could have been done about it,” he told ThePrint.
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‘We should talk on merit’
Channi’s campaign ahead of the elections had its share of controversy. During his campaign in Jalandhar earlier this month, Channi said that the terror attack on an Indian Air Force (IAF) convoy in Poonch was a “pre-election stunt” by the BJP — leading to a warning from the Election Commission. However, the Congress candidate later clarified that his statement had been distorted.
“We should talk on merit. I speak what I feel is right. Controversies will happen anyway. When you talk of revolution in society or expose the truth, controversies are bound to occur,” he told ThePrint when asked about his tendency to run into controversies.
A viral video featuring Channi’s meeting with Akali leader Bibi Jagir Kaur also sparked debate. In the video, he is seen meeting her affectionately holding her hands and touching her face.
“The people who depicted a respectful relationship as inappropriate should be ashamed of themselves. For example, someone could misrepresent this meeting by playing inappropriate music in the background. But that would be the wrongdoing of that person and an act they should be ashamed of,” said the former CM.
“I have always respected Bibi ji (Jagir Kaur) and will continue to do so. I bent and touched her hands to my forehead as a mark of respect since she is older than me and is a spiritual figurehead. It was my duty to give her respect.”
Modi, Mann & more
Regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visits to Punjab, Channi said that whenever the PM comes to Punjab, the situation in the state deteriorates.
“It happened the last time (2022) he came and then this time too. Farmers were thrown in jails (Friday). He (Modi) needs to improve his approach towards Punjab. His approach brings about negativity and ruins the atmosphere of the state. He needs to start addressing the issues in Punjab for the people to see him in a better light,” he suggested.
Furthermore, Channi also spoke about Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, stating that the AAP leader has not been able to “get off the stage of a performer.”
“I’ve said before that there is a difference between running a state and running a stage. Bhagwant Mann ji has not gotten off the stage to date. He has not been able to do anything for the state and does he have the capacity to do it either. You shouldn’t even have any hopes from him,” he said. “If we expect that a layman will make great administrative decisions, then it will be our mistake.”
When asked about Modi’s offering to work towards the independence of the media in the context of the Mann government registering a case against the editor of the Ajit group of newspaper Barjinder Singh Hamdard, Channi said that both BJP and AAP had the same style of functioning when it came to the media.
“Both these parties stifle the media through either blackmail or greed and expect them to indulge in malpractices,” he told ThePrint.
He added that the jhadu (AAP symbol) government followed the same policy towards the Ajit newspaper and tried to mould it using everything — litigation, coercion, and registration of FIRs. “In reality, this is a major attack on the media, and such a large attack should not be attempted by these two parties. It is extremely wrong. They are ruining democracy and its values,” Channi emphasised.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)
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