JALANDAR: Change of guards has taken place at the top in Punjab Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Former Punjab Technical University (PTU) vice-chancellor Rajneesh Arora has been appointed as Prant Sah Sangh Chalak (state vice-president).
Iqbal Singh Ahluwalia from Sangrur, who was the state vicepresident till now, has been elevated as Prant Sangh Chalak (state president), thereby ensuring that a Sikh remains the state chief. The new appointments were made on Sunday on completion of their terms.
Iqbal Singh, 67, replaced Brij Bhushan Singh Bedi, 90, a retired college lecturer, who remained Prant Sangh Chalak for 26 years and was among the longest serving state presidents of RSS in the country.
Iqbal Singh retired from the Food Corporation of India and according to sources in the Sangh, his association with RSS started in 1963. However, he had been keeping a low profile.
Rajneesh Arora, 62, who did his BTech from IIT-Delhi and then doctorate also from there, remained VC of Inder Kumar Gujral PTU for two terms from 2009 to 2015 during the SAD-BJP regime. His association with the Sangh has been since his childhood days and for around 10 years he worked for RSS in distant parts of Jharkhand till 1993 when he had to return following the death of his younger brother. He is currently managing director of Amritsar Group of Colleges.
The change has taken place at a crucial time when Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) and BJP have severed ties and the latter is desperate to expand its base in the state. According to sources in RSS and BJP, the role of RSS will be crucial in this expansion. Unlike Iqbal Singh, given his professional career and new challenges, Arora is expected to play an active role in running the activities of the Sangh.
After Congress came to power, Arora was booked by vigilance bureau for alleged financial irregularities in PTU in January 2018, but in August this year, the bureau filed a cancellation report in a Kapurthala court and he and 10 others were discharged in the case.