NRI Sammelan by SAD-BJP government proved farce: Cong

Describing the two-day NRI Sammelan organised by the state government as a "farce", the Punjab Congress today accused the SAD-BJP alliance of "befooling" the Punjabi diaspora who had come to the event.
In a joint statement issued here, PPCC leaders Jagjit Singh, Santokh Singh and Amarjit Singh Samra said that the NRIs who attended the Sammelan, held at Anandpur Sahib and Jalandhar, had returned disillusioned as their grievances were not addressed.
The issues of land grab, property disputes and false cases registered against the NRIs were not attended to at the Sammelan, the leaders alleged, adding that the NRI meet was just an occasion to portray the lies of the government in a fashioned manner.

"Both father and son- Parkash Singh Badal and Sukhbir Singh Badal had given a pat to each other for better befooling of NRIs," they said.
Sukhbir had made tall claims of NRI investment in Punjab when he first held the NRI Sammelan in 2002, they said.
Seven years have passed, but not a single penny was invested by any NRI, the leaders claimed.

The Congress leaders said even during the current Sammelan, the NRIs have expressed concern over deteriorating law and order and harassment by police.
"The NRIs were not allowed to raise their grievances. Most of the invitees felt humiliated at the hands of the security staff," they alleged.

The PPCC leader claimed that many NRIs have complained that Akali leaders were grabbing their properties.