Hitting out at Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal over "subjugating" the authority of Akal Takht, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh today expressed concern over the "deteriorating" standard of education in the government schools.
"Tell me what sort of Sikh you are" Amarinder asked Badal while pointing out how he had "subjugated" the people like the SGPC president and Akal Takht Jathedar and made them works as his "personal subordinates".
Amarinder also expressed grave concern over the "deteriorating" standard of education in the government schools saying there was a "great chasm" when it came to education of the children belonging to the rich families and those belonging to the poor ones, which needs to be bridged.
Addressing a political conference organised on the occasion of 'Shaheedi Jor Mela' in memory of Sahibzada Zorawar Sigh and Sahibzada Fateh Singh, here today, Amarinder questioned even the Akali credentials of the Badals saying the true Akalis were well meaning people unlike Badal, who only was concerned about his own and family's interests.
Questioning the claims of Badal about safeguarding the interests of the Sikhs, he pointed out, it was the Congress government led by him in 2002 which had announced setting up of women and childcare hospital in memory of Mata Gujri.
But, he regretted, the Badal government did not complete it and had instead tried to "sell it off", which was got stopped by Congress MLA Kuljeet Nagra by filing a public interest litigation in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Referring to the incidents of sacrilege at Bargari and the use of "brutal force" on the peaceful protesters there, the PCC president said, such incidents reminded of the "Mughal atrocities" on Sikhs.
"Punjab needs change and it cannot change till this government is not thrown out," he said while appealing people to throw out this government to save Punjab.
Deputy Leader of the Congress Party in the Lok Sabha said "the Badals had brought the state to the brink of bankruptcy with the treasury remaining closed for most of the time while they keep on building seven star hotels for themselves."
Referring to the "alarming" increase in the number of suicides committed by farmers, he said , "The farmers are committing suicides because Badal's minister was responsible for supplying spurious seeds and pesticides to them".
Amarinder referred to the miserably "poor results" in the
government schools where 80 per cent students had failed their exams.
He said on the one hand there were children from rich families who study in the private schools and are scoring 98-99 per cent marks and get best jobs across India and even abroad, on the other hand there were other children from the poor families who go to the government schools but are not able to score good.
He pointed out majority of the children go to government schools and the standard of education needs to be improved there so that they get good jobs and regretted that like other sectors, the Badals had failed the education sector also.
Referring to the "widespread unemployment", he said Punjab needed investment and industrialisation.
"The government of its own cannot provide many jobs but it can formulate policies which will attract investment that will eventually lead to generation of jobs", he said, adding, "but this government has failed to win the confidence of the investors.
Speaking on the occasion former Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal said, Congress was completely united in Punjab under the leadership of Amarinder.
She said the countdown for the Akali-BJP government had started and people had made up their mind to return Congress to power.
Addressing the rally, the CLP leader Charanjit Singh Channi said Amarinder was the tallest Sikh leader today who was admired by the people and they wanted to see him as the Chief Minister once again.
