(Says Arvind Kejriwal complicit in Rs 700 crore Punjab excise scam, demands CBI inquiry)
(Asserts Charanjit Channi shedding crocodile tears, says former CM indulged in record corruption during his three month stint in office)
Jalandhar – Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today said chief minister Bhagwant Mann had betrayed the farming community by denying compensation to lakhs of farmers whose wheat crop had been damaged by inclement weather even as he sought to take cheap publicity by distributing cheques to only 127 farmers.
Calling the chief minister a liar who practiced politics of lies, Mr Sukhbir Badal said “this government has denied compensation to farmers twice earlier for losses suffered by them due to inclement weather and pest attacks while rearing their paddy and cotton crops. Now when farmers are facing ruin due to rain and hail storms which damaged standing wheat crops, the chief minister is doing a drama of compensation by clicking pictures with a few farmers even as lakhs await compensation”.
Talking to newsmen after inaugurating the election office of the SAD along with party candidate Dr Sukhwinder Kumar Sukhi and the senior party leadership, the SAD President also came down heavily on Delhi Chief Arvind Kejriwal for claiming he alone was honest after being called for questioning by the CBI in the Delhi excise scam. He said Kejriwal had not only looted money in connivance with liquor contractors in Delhi but had also handed over the entire liquor trade to the same contractors in Punjab. “The loot in Punjab, which will be to the tune of Rs 700 crore, is much bigger than the Delhi excise scam and should be probed on the Delhi pattern by the CBI”, he added.
Mr Badal also castigated former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi for shedding crocodile tears after being hauled up for corruption and stating that he did not have any land in his name. Asserting that such stunts would not help Channi or the Congress party, Mr Badal said “Punjabis know that Channi indulged in record corruption during his three month stint as chief minister. He presided over the sand mafia in the State besides being the kingpin behind illegal colonization”. The SAD president said Channi’s corruption had being laid bare before the people when his nephew was arrested with crores of ill gotten wealth.
The SAD President also condemned the AAP government for playing with the religious sentiments of the Sikh community by creating hurdles in the way of pilgrims visiting Takht Damdama Sahib on the occasion of Baisakhi. He said the same situation was witnessed at Sri Anandpur Sahib also. “It is apparent that the AAP government is practicing a policy of suppression in all spheres of life”. He said artists, intelligentsia and media persons raising the voice of the people were being repressed. “Cases are being registered against innocents even as bans have been imposed on various web channels solely because they did not toe the line of the AAP government”.
Asserting that the Jalandhar parliamentary bypoll would create history, Mr Badal said “Punjabis are ready to teach a lesson to this corrupt and scam ridden AAP government which is leading Punjab into chaos by failing to handle the law and order situation as well as communal tensions”. He said the SAD had always stood for peace and communal harmony and this was the bedrock for record development during its tenure. “Today we are witnessing the flight of industry and rising unemployment due to the failed policies of AAP”, he added. EOM
