Police stop AAP march to Chandigarh against Badal

Nearly 15,000 Aam Aadmi Party activists on Monday marched towards Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal's residence here to protest but Chandigarh Police stopped them at the city's border with Mohali town of Punjab.

Later, a delegation of AAP leaders, including Sanjay Singh, in charge of the party's affairs in Punjab, state convenor Sucha Singh Chottepur, MP Bhagwant Mann and actor-comedian Gurpreet Ghuggi, was escorted by police to meet acting Punjab Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki to submit a memorandum against the Badal government.

The protestors are seeking a high-level probe into the Rs.12,000-crore scam of 'missing' food grain.

Security in and around Chandigarh was tightened on Monday ahead of the AAP protest against the Punjab government's alleged failure to probe the food grain scam and curb the menace of drugs, mafia and corruption.

The area around the official residences of the chief minister and his son and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal in the upscale Sector 2 was barricaded by Chandigarh Police. Scores of police personnel, many of them in anti-riot gear, were also deployed.

Chandigarh Police personnel were also deployed around the Haryana Raj Bhavan, the official residence of Haryana Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki, in Sector 6.

Security was also increased at all entry points to Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, to stop the AAP activists from moving in close to the VIP residences.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had cancelled all his official engagements for Monday to receive AAP leaders who wished to protest outside his official residence.

In the past, Badal stayed at his official residence to meet Congress leaders protesting outside.

Elections to the Punjab assembly are likely to be held in February next year.

--IANS

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