Punjab Cong asks Akalis to 'make amends' during Shah meeting

Congress's Punjab unit today asked Akali leaders to make amends during their proposed meeting with BJP chief Amit Shah in Chandigarh tomorrow for allegedly failing to secure the state's interests with the Centre.

"The Badals should thank Congress president Rahul Gandhi for reminding the BJP of the importance of their allies," state Congress chief Sunil Jakhar said.

Shah is expected to meet the leaders of Akali Dal as part of the BJP's "Sampark se Samarthan" initiative, aimed at highlighting achievements of the Modi government and soliciting support in the run-up to the 2019 general election.

Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar said the meeting with Shah "is a golden opportunity" for the Akalis to "make amends".

He asked Akali leaders to raise issues relating to farmers, the SYL canal and escalating fuel prices with Shah.

As a senior and seasoned leader, SAD's Parkash Singh Badal should also raise the pendency of the post-matric scholarship with the central government, Jakhar said.

"The Centre has been holding up the state's share of Rs 1,617 crore meant for SC/ST matric scholarship, and I urge Badals to seek an explanation from Amit Shah on it," he said.

Flanked by cabinet ministers Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa and Sukhbinder Singh Sukh Sarkaria and other leaders, he told reporters at the Punjab Bhavan that the Congress's performance in Gujarat and Karnataka had jolted the BJP into reaching out to its allies.

He claimed that Gandhi has emerged as a major threat to the BJP.

Jakhar pointed to BJP's defeat in recent bypolls in Uttar Pradesh, including in Kairana, and said the setbacks routed the "arrogance" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shah.

He suggested that the Badals write to Shah today to ensure he does not visit them "empty-handed" for the meeting.

Farmers all over the country and particularly in Punjab are agitating against the policies of the Modi government and its backtracking on the promise to implement the Swaminathan Commission report, he said, accusing the BJP leaders of making false promises to the nation during the past four years.

Criticising the Akalis for allegedly politicising religion and farming issues, Jakhar said it was Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh who was not pressuring the Centre to release funds for the celebration of 550th birth anniversary of the first Sikh Guru Sri Guru Nanak Dev next year.