Jagdeep Kamboj Goldy is an Indian advocate-turned-politician associated with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) who was elected as the MLA in the Jalalabad Assembly Constituency during the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections.
Wiki/Biography
Jagdeep Kamboj Goldy was born on Saturday, 21 April 1984 (age 38 years; as of 2022), and he hails from Jalalabad, Punjab, India. He completed his B.A & LLB From Maharaja Ganga Singh University Bikaner in 2010. Before venturing into politics, Jagdeep Kamboj pursued a career in law and agriculture.
Family
Parents & Siblings
Kamboj was intrigued by politics due to his father, Surinder Kamboj, who had contested the Jalalabad seat twice in the past. Surinder Kamboj was also the chairman of the Punjab Agriculture Development Bank, Jalalabad. Surinder Singh Kamboj was arrested on the allegation of flesh trade in 2007 and has several criminal cases registered against him like rape and duping a petrol pump. Ironically, while Surinder Kamboj is accused of carrying smack and opium in Punjab, Jagdeep Kamboj works to ensure a drug-free Punjab.
Jagdeep Kamboj Goldy with his mother
Wife & Children
His wife’s name is Sobia Jagdeep Kamboj. He has two children, a daughter named Feriha Kamboj (born in 2017) son named Aval Kamboj (born in 2020).
A picture of Jagdeep Kamboj with his family
Sobia Jagdeep Kamboj actively participated in Kamboj’s political journey since his IYC days.
A promotional poster featuring Sobia Jagdeep Kamboj campaigning for IYC in 2019
When Jagdeep Kamboj joined AAP in 2020, she started campaigning for AAP.
Sobia Jagdeep Kamboj distributing AAP’s promotional pamphlets in Jalalabad
Signature/Autograph
Jagdeep Kamboj’s resignation letter featuring his signature
Politics
Indian Youth Congress (IYC)
He ventured into politics via Indian Youth Congress (IYC). Kamboj is a former general secretary of the All-India Youth Congress. He has also served as the incharge of the Jammu & Kashmir Youth Congress and Haryana Youth Congress. In 2016, Kamboj participated in the student protest against Jiwan Jyoti Polytechnic College, Jalalabad, for admitting sixty-nine students in six different streams of a three-year diploma in 2013 without the mandatory approval of the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE).
Jagdeep Kamboj Goldy protesting along with students outside the SDM’s office in Jalalabad in 2016
Kamboj was an MLA ticket aspirant in the 2017 assembly polls, but Congress fielded Ravneet Singh Bittu at that time. During the 2017 Punjab Legislative Assembly election, AAP MLA Bhagwant Mann contested from the Jalalabad Assembly Constituency but lost the polls to Punjab Deputy CM and Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal. When by-poll in the Shahkot Assembly Constituency was necessitated because of the death of Akali Dal MLA Ajit Singh Kohar on February 4, 2018, Kamboj actively campaigned for Congress.
Jagdeep Kamboj, along with Navjot Singh Sidhu campaigning for Congress in Shahkot Assembly Constituency in 2018
As a member of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), Jagdeep Kamboj actively participated in the protests held in Delhi against the Modi government for hiked petrol prices in 2018.
Jagdeep Kamboj protesting against the Modi government for hiked petrol prices in 2018
On 23 September 2019, he resigned from the position of national secretary of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC). Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Sunil Jakhar, in a letter dispatched on 11 October 2019, stated that Kamboj was expelled from the Congress for contesting the Assembly by-election from Jalalabad against the official Congress candidate. Kamboj had resigned protesting the allotment of party ticket to an outsider Raminder Singh Awla, who hailed from Guru Har Sahai Assembly Constituency, instead of him. Fumed over the matter, Kamboj decided to enter the poll fray as an Independent candidate.
Independent candidate during 2019 Jalalabad by-election
The Jalalabad assembly seat, which was earlier represented by Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, got vacant when he was elected to the Lok Sabha. The seat was contested during the 2019 Bye-Election to the Punjab Legislative Assembly. Jagdeep Kamboj independently contested from the Jalalabad Assembly Constituency in the by-polls in Punjab after Congress denied him a ticket. His election symbol was “A man driving a tractor” and his election slogan was “Neta Nahi Beta.”
Jagdeep Kamboj Goldy’s independent promotional poster during 2019 by-polls in Punjab in which he contested from Jalalabad Assembly Constituency
He garnered 5,836 votes but lost the elections. Congress candidate Raminder Singh Awla won the 2019 Jalalabad by-election on the Indian National Congress ticket, defeating Shiromani Akali Dal candidate Raj Singh Dibbipura by 16,000 votes.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
He joined the Aam Aadmi Party in February 2020. Later, he was appointed as the state president of the BC wing of the youth wing. In December 2021, he became the AAP MLA candidate for the Jalalabad assembly constituency. On 10 March 2022, Jagdeep Kamboj won the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections from the Jalalabad Assembly Constituency, defeating Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal by over 30,000 votes. Sukhbir Singh Badal’s defeat was a prominent event in Jalalabad’s history as Badal had been a three-time legislator from the constituency.
Jagdeep Kamboj celebrating his win in the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections with a roadshow
Meanwhile, AAP, under the leadership of chief ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann won 92 out of 117 seats in the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly election and formed its first state government.
Controversies
Involved in the theft of cars
In 2007, Jagdeep Kamboj was taken into custody by the Chandigarh Police for alleged involvement in the theft of cars. Jagdeep Kamboj was then a final-year student of the department of laws of Panjab University. A week before Jagdeep’s arrest, his father, Surinder Singh Kamboj, was arrested on the allegation of the prostitution racket. Later, two more accomplices of Surinder Singh Kamboj were taken into custody by the police. While Surinder Kamboj was on police remand, the other three arrested with him in the case were sent to judicial custody. In charge of the operation cell of the Chandigarh Police inspector Vijay Kumar informed the media that Jagdeep Kamboj and Sanjeev Chhabra’s names popped up during sustained interrogation of Surinder Singh. During the investigation, a stolen Hyundai Accent car, a seal of the Registration and Licensing Authority, Batala, and a fake registration certificate of the vehicle were recovered from Jagdeep.
(From left to right) Jagdeep Kamboj Goldy, Surinder Kamboj, and Sanjeev Chhabra in police custody in Sector 26 Chandigarh
Charged for Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property (IPC Section-420)
In July 2015, Jagdeep Kamboj was booked for allegedly duping a villager named Resham Singh of Rs 6.25 lakh. Reportedly, Kamboj had promised Resham Singh to get his son-in-law Surjit Singh’s name deleted from an FIR registered in a murder case. When Jagdeep failed to keep his promise, Resham asked him to return the money, but Jagdeep refused to refund the amount. Furthermore, during the investigation, SSP Fazilka, found that Jagdeep had cheated others too.
Car Collection
Net Worth
Jagdeep Kamboj’s net worth is Rs. 2,89,20,422 (as of 2022).
Assets & Properties
Movable Assets
- Deposits in Banks, Financial Institutions and Non-Banking Financial Companies- Rs. 1,20,000
- LIC or other insurance Policies- Rs. 70,422
- Motor Vehicles- Rs. 12,00,000
Immovable Assets
- Agricultural Land- Rs 1,55,00,000
- Non Agricultural Land- Rs 30,00,000
- Residential Buildings- Rs 1,00,00,000
Facts/Trivia
- In an interview, after his win in the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections, Jagdeep Kamboj claimed that he parted ways with Congress as the party leaders look for wealthy candidates who can give money to the party in exchange for MLA ticket allotment.
- Media houses also refer to him as Goldy and Goldy Kamboj.