Acclaimed playback singer Kailash Kher is set to replace Hans Raj Raghuwanshi in the devotional bhajan sandhyas being organised by the Punjab Government under its ongoing religious outreach series, “Ek Sham Bhagwan Shiv Ke Naam”, across the state.The series began in Jalandhar on June 14, following which Raghuwanshi performed at four more venues, including Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Batala. The change in the line-up was announced by Deepak Bali, adviser to the Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs and key organiser of the events, through his social media handles.Bali said the next three programmes under the banner would be held in Pathankot on July 17, Mukerian on July 18 and Dasuya on July 19. The announcement comes amid reports that Raghuwanshi had allegedly demanded a payment of Rs 40 lakh before taking the stage at the last event, triggering controversy. Bali, however, dismissed the reports, insisting there was no dispute over payment.“I have been in the show business for over three decades. I cannot allow an event attended by my political bosses to go haywire. We had to change the singer for the upcoming programmes because Raghuwanshi had prior professional commitments. Therefore, we decided to rope in Kailash Kher,” he said.With Kher on board, the Aam Aadmi Party leadership expects the devotional evenings to draw larger crowds and generate greater enthusiasm. Known for his soulful voice and spiritually inspired music, Kher enjoys a strong following among devotees in Punjab. Songs such as Bam Lahiri, Teri Deewani and several Shiva bhajans have made him one of the country’s most recognisable devotional singers. Kher, however, is also considered to be close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal has already announced that 22 more programmes under the series are planned across Punjab. The upcoming venues include Moga, Ludhiana, Rupnagar, Patiala, Mohali, Bathinda, Mansa and Kapurthala.Kher’s manager Satish Iyer said, “We are still in talks with the Punjab Government. The exact modalities are being finalised.”Notably, AAP announced its bhajan series after a controversy in Jalandhar, where the police had tried to stop a bhajan sandhya by Kanhaiya Mittal organised by estranged MLA and bhajan singer Raman Arora. Arora, who heads a temple committee in the city, is now learnt to be going ahead with another religious event featuring spiritual preacher Pradeep Mishra.Officials in the Tourism and Cultural Affairs Department said the fee to be paid to Kher had not yet been finalised.