Come elections and 83-year-old Giani Sant Singh of Baramulla is a man transformed. Nothing can stop him from filing his nomination - he has contested almost all elections for the assembly and Parliament, beginning with the Praja Sabha in 1934 - though he hasn't won ever. And once he ensures his name is on the ballot paper, he sets out to campaign, cutting himself off from his family. No one can trace him for no one knows his route. Only late in the evening, he returns to his picturesque Uplina village atop a hill.Undeterred by old age and lack of finance and support from his family, he is this time defying the militants' threat as an independent candidate. He surfaces from nowhere with his message of Hindu-Muslim-Sikh brotherhood. Since Hindus - the Kashmiri Pandits - have left, he calls for Muslim-Sikh bhaichara these days, all alone.This correspondent had a chance encounter with him while returning disappointed to Srinagar. There he was with his flowing dusty white beard delivering a speech to a handful of people in a high-pitched voice by the roadside. He was forceful but incoherent. No subject was left untouched though people could hardly make out the essence of his speech. He was alternating between Hindi and Kashmiri. ``Agar mujhe vote nahin doge to Farooq tumhe fana kar dega (If you do not vote for me, Farooq will obliterate you),'' thunders the Giani before winding up his speech.A graduate from Lahore, Giani was in jail for more than four years during the freedom struggle and had once shared the cell with Krishna Kant, now Vice-President.Just the mention of his name makes the people grin. They respect him, love him and listen to him, and some even vote for him. ``I have a strong band of loyal voters who always vote for me,'' says Giani. In the 15 Assembly segments, spread over two districts of Baramulla and Kupwara, Giani has been bagging votes in double and triple digits. In Sonawari segment, he was neck-and-neck with Congress candidate Abdul Gani Vakil. While Vakil got 554 votes, the Giani polled 511.He surprised everyone by scoring more than Din Mohammad Cheeta of the BJP at least in five Assembly segments of Bandipora, Sonawari, Sangrama, Baramulla and Pattan last time. Other independents were way behind him though his total poll account was just 2,876 votes.His wife, Maya Kaur, cannot stop worrying about him till he returns home. The district administration has posted five security guards at his residence and two more armed guards accompany him everywhere in a fully-covered Gypsy. The Sardar returns covered in dust but with full of spirit and with loads of newspapers. ``He is an avid reader of newspapers and most of his time at home is spent in reading,'' says his eldest son who serves in the state forest department.This Dhartipakad of Kashmir may not make much of a difference to the electorate but he does liven up an otherwise dull poll scene that's now dominated by fear.
