If demands not met, Cong to protest outside Badal’s house on June 23
Tuesday, 17/06/2014
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CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Congress has decided to hold a protest demonstration outside Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal’s residence here on June 23 in case the latter failed to meet its long-pending demands in a week’s time.
Addressing a press conference here on Monday, CLP leader Sunil Jakhar said the SAD-BJP government should immediately arrange to make payment of 186 crore to the far mers for their sugarcane crop, which had already been delayed a lot.
Jakhar also asked Badal to withdraw the property tax in the state. “There is a huge backlog of various social welfare schemes pending in Punjab, which include Shagun and widow and old-age pension schemes. The beneficiaries of these schemes are Dalits and weaker sections. The government must not deprive these sections of their lawful right,” said Jakhar. He said if the Akali government failed to fulfil these demands in a week, the Congress would be forced to hold t he protest demonstration outside Badal’s residence.
Jakhar also impressed upon the state government to increase the duration of the budget session scheduled from July 15 to July 22. Earlier, Jakhar held a meeting with the Congress legislators to devise the strategy to be adopted during the budget session in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha . Of the 43 Congress MLAs, 30 attended the meeting.
Jakhar said it was the prerogative of the party high command to have Partap Singh Bajwa as the Punjab Congress chief, when asked to comment on the growing voices within the party, including that of former chief minister Amarinder Singh, openly seeking Bajwa’s exit.
