Chanduraian is Punjab info commission member

The Punjab government has decided to appoint the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader from Malerkotla, Ajit Singh Chanduraian, as member of Punjab State Information Commission.

According to information received from the chief minister’s office, CM Parkash Singh Badal has written to the governor, seeking time for administering the oath of office to Chanduraian.

Chanduraian, a former member of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, had contested the assembly polls from Malerkotla as an independent candidate in 1997, 2002 and 2012, but had lost of on all occasions.

He lost the 2002 polls with a slender margin of 179 votes and contested the 2012 polls as People’s Party of Punjab candidate. He returned to the SAD fold in January 2014.

Chanduraian is close to SAD secretary general Sukhdev Sngh Dhindsa on whose insistence he was taken back into the SAD fold and is being appointed member of the state information commission.

“I am a staunch Akali, but sometimes when things don’t go your way, you feel frustrated, but I have proved myself by polling around 40,000 votes when I contested the polls,” Chanduraian told HT.

The 10-member (besides the chief information commissioner) state information commission has one vacancy against which Chanduraian is being appointed. Two vacancies in the commission will fall vacant by December with the retirement of Jaspal Kaur and Narinderjit Singh.