Amarinder responds to Shah's barb, says SAD, BJP don't know meaning of 'common man'

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh responded to BJP chief Amit Shah's "raja-maharaja' government barb on Monday, accusing him of speaking "blatant lies" and said the previous SAD-BJP dispensation did not even know the meaning of "common man".

He alleged Shah, at a BJP workers' meet in Amritsar on Sunday, tried to mislead people.

Singh said the BJP-SAD alliance has plummeted to the "depths of shamelessness" to recover their political ground in Punjab.

"From witch-hunts against opposition leaders, to ridiculous accusations and claims, BJP leaders were resorting to all kinds of disgraceful tactics to get back into public limelight, which the Modi government completely lost with its non-performance over the past five years," the chief minister claimed.

Shah had called the Amarinder Singh-led Congress dispensation in Punjab a "raja-maharaja" government. He had also hit out at Punjab cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu for hugging Pakistan Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa at Imran Khan's swearing-in ceremony as prime minister in Islamabad last year.

Singh said Shiromani Akali Dal patron Parkash Singh Badal, the chief minister of the SAD-BJP alliance, was completely unconnected from the common man during his tenure.

The SAD-BJP government failed to take a single initiative for the people of Punjab, he asserted.

"What have they done for the farmers? What did they do all these years to check stubble burning? What incentives have they given the industry? How many jobs did they give the youth? Who pushed the youth into drugs?, the chief minister asked Shah, in a statement here.

And he (Shah) has the audacity to claim Badal functioned like a common man?" he said.

Citing the "success" of his government's Ghar Ghar Rozgar and Karobar Yojana in facilitating employment, the chief minister said the previous Badal government had no such scheme for the youth.

"My government has given industrial power subsidy, we have launched wellness clinics, projects for drinking water and sanitation, repair of rural link roads, smart city and smart village campaigns.

"We are building schools, colleges, roads and bridges. We have enhanced pensions, funds under Ashirward & other schemes. We are ensuring that the real beneficiaries get their due and the money is not pocketed by unscrupulous rulers and officials. We are getting back the lost industry and investments?, the chief minister said listing out his government's schemes.