MPs from Punjab have flopped miserably in the last five years. An extensive survey by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Daksh has shown that six of the 10 worst performing MPs in the country are from Punjab. The survey was conducted across 525 constituencies which judged MPs on 30 governance parameters. Around 500 voters from each constituency were involved in the survey.
In fact, all the 13 Lok Sabha MPs from Punjab have been rated "below average" as none could cross the mark of four on a scale of 10. Eight of these MPs are again in the fray while four have been denied tickets by their parties and one has bowed out on health grounds.
SAD MP Sher Singh Ghubaya and Congress MP and Union minister of state for health Santosh Chowdhary were at the bottom with a score of 3.37, Patiala MP and minister of state Preneet Kaur emerged as the "best" but her score stopped at 3.99.
Interestingly, the entire Punjab government was backing Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal and some even alleged that funds and projects were going only to the Badal bastion. However, ADR has put her score at 3.62 on governance issues.
While Chowdhary has been denied a ticket by her party, Ghubaya has been fielded again, but SAD president Sukhbir Badal had to ask upset voters of Ferozepur to forgive the sitting MP this time and that he would deliver in the next term.
Apart from Chowdhary and Ghubaya the "Bottom Club" includes Gurdaspur MP and Punjab Congress president Partap Singh Bajwa, who was initially reluctant to contest the election but was pushed into the field by the party high command.
Others include Amritsar BJP MP Navjot Sidhu, who has been denied ticket, SAD's Khadoor Sahib MP Ratan Singh Ajnala, who was dropped after his name cropped up in the synthetic drugs racket and Congress MP Ravneet Bittu who has been shifted from Anandpur Sahib to Ludhiana.
Not far from the bottom is Congress's Mohinder Singh Kaypee Congress MP from Sangrur MP Vijay Inder Singl, Faridkot MP Paramjit Kaur Gulshan who has faced tough questions from votes in several of her meetings and has repeatedly apologized in various meetings, Ludhiana MP Manish Tewari, whose reluctance to contest was known.
