Seek account from Cong for stopping welfare initiatives: Sukhbir tells voters in Punjab's Jalalabad

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday urged voters here to seek account from the Congress-led Punjab government for allegedly stopping all social welfare initiatives launched by the previous SAD-BJP regime.

He was addressing public meetings here to seek support for SAD candidate from Jalalabad seat, Raj Singh Dibbipura, ahead of the October 21 state assembly bypolls.

Badal alleged that the Congress government has discriminated against every section of the society.

"This is a good opportunity to give a jolt to the Congress to force it to fulfil the promises it made," he said.

The SAD chief said real time development took place in Jalalabad during the two terms of the SAD-BJP government.

But all the development work, he alleged, had been stopped during the last two-and-a-half years. Even social welfare benefits like wheat flour, pulses, old age pension have been denied to a large section of population.

He appealed to the residents of Jalalabad constituency to seek an account from Chief Minister Amarinder Singh-led state government over this.

The SAD president said Dibbipura is one of Jalalabad's own, while Congress candidate Raminder Awla, who hails from neighbouring Guruharsahai, is an "outsider".

Badal claimed Awla doesn't even hail from Guruharsahai but is from Uttar Pradesh and appealed to people to not fall for his promise of setting up factories.

"Why didn't Awla open any industry in Guruharsahai or give a single job to anyone from this area till now?" he asked.

Asserting that the SAD was committed to the development of Jalalabad, Badal said, "My aim is to ensure that not a single poor person lives in a kutcha house when we form the government next time in Punjab."