‘Cancellation of Modi’s Anandpur Sahib visit setback to Akalis’
Wednesday, 17/06/2015
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SAYS MODI’S DECISION HAS GIVEN RISE TO SPECULATIONS ABOUT WIDENING RIFT BETWEEN ALLIANCE PARTNERS SAD AND BJP
SANGRUR: Former Punjab chief minister and senior Congress leader Rajinder Kaur Bhattal on Tuesday said the cancellation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Anandpur Sahib for celebrating 350 years of the city’s foundation was a setback to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).
She said that Modi’s decision had given rise to speculations about a widening rift between the alliance partners SAD and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The senior Congress leader said differences between the SAD and the BJP had led to political instability, taking toll on the development of the state. “On most of the issues concerning the state, the ruling alliance partners are not on the same page and speak in different voices. The alliance merely exists on paper as the leaders of both the parties have been repeatedly involved in slugfest with regard to various aspects of governance,” she said.
Even the state administration seems to have become indifferent to the problems faced by the people. “The Badal family seems to be more interested in pushing its own vested interests rather than caring for the welfare of the common man in Punjab,” she said, adding that the Badal government had no clue how to tackle the state’s crippled economy.
The people of the state have become fed up with the Badal government apparently due to lack of development and increasing unemployment in the state. She said the youth was frustrated as there were no work opportunities and new avenues for employment in the state.
