Satoj falls under the Sunam Assembly segment of Sangrur Lok Sabha seat, which will see Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Barnala MLA and minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer take on Congress’s Bholath MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira and Iqbal Singh Jhundan of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). All 13 seats of the state go to the polls in the final phase on June 1.

The walls of the village are adorned predominantly with Khaira’s posters, with a few of Hayer’s. “Khaira needs to show his face and make his presence felt but Hayer does not need to do so as the village will vote for broom (AAP’s election symbol) even if the party does not campaign here,” says 55-year-old Karamjit Singh.

New fans and shed installed at the common sitting point of villagers at Bhagwant Mann’s ancestral village Satoj in Sangrur. (Express photo by Gurmeet Singh)

The Congress, on the other hand, alleges that AAP leaders have been threatening e-rickshaw drivers against displaying Khaira’s advertisements. “This is happening especially in Sunam. But the people of Punjab do not buckle under pressure,” says a member of Khaira’s team.

Khaira is confident of a victory, saying silent voters fed up with the AAP will vote for him. “Many of them are not coming out in the open but they will give the AAP a befitting reply on polling day,” he tells The Indian Express.

On a bench in the village park, 55-year-old Amrik Singh says Mann has visited the village only thrice after assuming office and not yet for campaigning. “Many works in the village are progressing at a slow pace but at least they are being done. We do not have anything against Mann and his government,” he says.

Amrik is also happy that his three children “will not run to Canada” as they are employed in the industrial training institutes in Sunam and Ludhiana. “We are also getting electricity for agriculture during the day. In a way, we are seeing improvement,” he says.

A little ahead of Mann’s ancestral home is an under-construction panchayat office, with heaps of garbage lying in front of it. The road leading up to it also needs repairs. The state of the village draws a comparison between former Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal’s native village of Badal in Muktsar district and Satoj.

New Panchayat Ghar being constructed at Bhagwant Mann’s ancestral village Satoj in Sangrur. (Express photo by Gurmeet Singh)

“This village is not as well developed as Badal but we feel the skyline of Satoj will change over the years. We have water for irrigation and do not have to pay electricity bills even as many villagers have secured government jobs. It is a win-win situation for us. We are being patient and hoping the village will get more facilities,” says 65-year-old Parkash Chand, adding that the village needs a bank and a civil hospital and the high school needs to be upgraded to senior secondary.

In response, the AAP says Mann treats the entire state as his own and not just his village and hence development is seen across Punjab. “People compare Satoj with Badal village but Badal was CM for five terms while it has only been two years since Mann assumed office. All works will be gradually completed. Not only Sangrur, the AAP will win all 13 seats,” AAP spokesperson Neel Garg tells The Indian Express.

The village, which has 2,700 voters, has an Aam Aadmi Clinic. Since Mann was first elected as Sangrur MP in 2014, the AAP has been polling no less than 1,700 votes from the village.

Among some farmers, there is a sense of resentment. “Villagers here cultivate wheat and paddy. The CM tried to convince us to diversify our crop but we cannot even think of cultivating anything else as other crops do not fetch us income even close to wheat and paddy,” says 60-year-old Dalip Singh.

One of the changes the village has seen after Mann assumed office is the installation of several CCTV cameras. As one leaves the village, one cannot help but notice burnt wheat fields on the outskirts. Stubble burning is a big problem in Punjab and is blamed for fuelling high pollution in Haryana and Delhi during the winter.

Summing up the situation, Parkash, a fruit and vegetable vendor, says, “Leaders have started coming to our village in small gatherings, unlike the Badals’ village where leaders are seen thronging, doing roadshows and big rallies.”

AAP’s Hayer tells The Indian Express, “Our government fulfilled most of the guarantees. Many works, which were not guaranteed or promised, like the closure of many toll plazas, the starting of a sadak surksha force etc have been done while many others are under process and will be completed soon. No promised work will remain pending by the end of the government’s tenure of five years.” The election in Sangrur, he adds, is between locals and “outsiders”.