Come out of medieval mindset: Capt to Badal Capt dreaming like Mungeri Lal, says Cheema

Sunday, 05/07/2015

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RAJPURA (PATIALA): Continuing his tirade against the Punjab government in general and the Badals in particular, Amritsar MP and Congress deputy leader in Lok Sabha Capt Amarinder Singh on Saturday advised chief minister Parkash Singh Badal to come out of his “medieval mindset” as the world had moved past his “two-century-old” sangat darshan idea.

Amritsar MP Capt Amarinder Singh with his wife, Congress legislator Preneet Kaur, during a rally at Rajpura in Patiala district on Saturday.

“Punjab today does not need your medieval practice of distributing grants at your whims and fancies; it needs proper and long-term planning,” he told Badal while addressing an impressive public meeting organised by local MLA Hardyal Kamboj.

Reacting to Badal’s recent criticism of his public meetings and mass contact programme, Amarinder said, “We organise mass contact programmes like these, where people are not forced and lured with bogus cheques, but come of their own will.”

He claimed that Badal could not think beyond his sangat darshan that eventually led to eroding of the economy with Rs 130 lakh crore debt, unemployment and the closure of industry.

Amarinder also lambasted Union minister Harsimart Kaur Badal, saying, “No one listens to her in the NDA government and she is making big political statements here. She is a political novice.”

Reiterating that the drug scourge was eating into the vitals of society, Amarinder held Akalis responsible for it saying the Akalis patronised drug smugglers. He claimed that while small-time drug addicts were being jailed, the big fish were roaming free with the Badals’ help.

He advised Badal to look beyond his personal and family interests and think about Punjab. He claimed that Badal had inherited just 80 acres of land from his father and now his assets were worth billions. He alleged that while the roads in Punjab were crying for attention as the government had no money, Badal had built a special road in Mullanpur that led to his under-construction five-star hotel. “Why should the people of Punjab bear the expenses of the road which is meant only for your hotel,” he asked Badal.

Amarinder said the large gatherings at his rallies reflected the widespread anger and resentment against the government. He said wherever he went people came in large numbers to express support and solidarity with them as they wanted to get WE ORGANISE MASS-CONTACT PROGRAMMES WHERE PEOPLE ARE NOT LURED WITH BOGUS CHEQUES. CAPT AMARINDER SINGH, Amritsar MP rid of the Akalis at the earliest.

The senior Congress leader promised that once the Congress formed the government, it would focus on developing industry and infrastructure which would help create jobs.

Speaking on the occasion, Congress Legislature Party leader Sunil Jakhar said Amarinder’s rallies had created a storm across Punjab and shaken the Akali-BJP regime. He said the Akalis were regularly getting humiliated by the BJP leaders and they were not even in a position to protest.

Patiala MLA Preneet Kaur and Congress leader Lal Singh also addressed the meeting. Among others present on the occasion were Rana Gurjit Singh, Kewal Dhillon, Sukh Sarkaria, Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Sukhjinder Randhawa, Balbir Sidhu and Gur Iqbal Kaur.

LOOKING FOR NEW NAME FOR SUKHBIR
After taking several digs at Sukhbir, former chief minister Amarinder Singh said he was looking for a new name for Sukhbir. “Earlier I used to call him balungra (kitten). However, he is now grown up and has a grey beard, so I can’t call him a balungra. I am in a dilemma what to call him,” he said, leaving the audience in splits. PATIALA: The Shiromani Akali Dal on Saturday said it had no objection if former chief minister Amarinder Singh liked to dream like Mungeri Lal for setting up a Congress government in the state.

Reacting to the statement of Amarinder Singh at the Rajpura rally, SAD spokesman and education minister Daljit Singh Cheema said it was strange that after biting the dust twice in the assembly elections, Amarinder Singh was still dreaming to come to power in the next elections. He reminded the Congress leader that the people of the state had voted for Parkash Singh Badal’s style of functioning while rejecting his royal style of functioning.

Cheema said sangat darshan is the best way to reach out to people. He also reminded the former CM that during his tenure as chief minister, leave alone the common man, his own ministers had to look for him to get work done. He said if he still thought his style was the best and dreamt to regain power, the SAD wished him the best of luck and had no objection in his dreaming like Mungeri Lal.

Lashing out at the Congress MP for his comments on the education system in the state, Cheema said Amarinder was the only CM who had banned the recruitment of teachers during his tenure. Had he done the required work during his tenure, the situation would have been different, Cheema added.