Bassi Pathana rebel candidate Harnek Singh quits poll race
5 Dariya News
Chandigarh 29-Jan-2017
Heeding party president Captain Amarinder Singh’s appeal to withdraw in the interest of the party and the state, the Bassi Pathana rebel Congress candidate Harnek Singh Diwana on Sunday announced his decision to retire from the poll race in favour of the official Congress nominee Gurpreet Singh GP.Harnek, who was Secretary of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC), announced his withdrawal from the elections, saying he would whole-heartedly support Gurpreet Singh GP in the interest of the party and the state.Harnek, a close confidant of late Punjab Minister Captain Kanwaljit Singh, had resigned from the primary membership of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in 2009 to join the PPCC.An ex-serviceman, he had filed his nomination papers from Bassi Pathana after being denied the Congress ticket for the 2017 assembly elections.everal other party rebels have already left the race after Captain Amarinder’s personal appeal. Of those who refused to surrender, the party has already permanently expelled 17, with Captain Amarinder making it clear that they would not be allowed re-entry into the Congress.