See through false promises of Badals, AAP: Amarinder to voters

Image
Press Trust of India Patiala
Last Updated : Jan 29 2017 | 10:13 PM IST
Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh today appealed to electorates to join him in the battle against the dangers posed by the Badals and Arvind Kejriwal to the state.
He pledged not to allow the Badals to "get away with goondagardi" and urged the Election Commission to "remove thousands of volunteers brought by AAP from other states, including Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, to manage its Punjab poll campaign".
At a public meeting in his hometown of Patiala, Singh said the Akalis and the AAP leadership posed a threat to the state and asked people to see through their "false" promises.
The Congress chief ministerial candidate, with his wife Preneet Kaur by his side, denounced the Badal government, saying development works ground to a halt in Patiala and Amritsar, which he represented as a Member of Parliament, under the Badal rule out of "sheer vengeance".
He said he had set up the Patiala Development Authority with a corpus of Rs 300 crore at the time of leaving the state government and the Amritsar Development Authority, which had funds to the tune of Rs 2,700 crore during his tenure.
The Badal government, however, diverted the fund to their "personal" coffers, the PPCC chief alleged.
Singh, while referring to "the list of Kejriwal's broken promises" in Delhi, said AAP "with its threatening mix of extreme ideologies" was an example of poor governance and corruption.
As many as 19 AAP MLAs in Delhi were behind bars on charges of graft and rape, he said and added that with "its bunch of outsiders and total lack of experience in good governance", the party could not put Punjab back on the track of progress.
He said that in the Akalis' 10-year rule, industries fled the state and mafias ruled the roost, "which is evident from the Nabha jailbreak".
He reiterated his promise of punishing all those found involved in the recent incidents of sacrilege in the state.
"I will not spare anyone even if it is Badal," he said.
Under the SAD-BJP rule, the government exchequer did not have sufficient money to pay salaries and properties were "sold and mortgaged" to make essential payments, he said, adding that nowhere had he seen any government being run like this.
"The youth of the state suffered due to unemployment and the drug menace," Singh said as he vowed to "wipe out" drugs from the state within four weeks if his party came to power.
"The halqa in-charges are looting people at the behest of the Badals," he alleged.

Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content

*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Exclusive premium stories online

  • Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Jan 29 2017 | 10:13 PM IST

Next Story