Badal pushed state into debt trap: Amarinder

Tuesday, 07/07/2015

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NABHA (PATIALA): Congress deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday accused chief minister Parkash Singh Badal of derailing the state’s economy. He said Badal had pushed Punjab into `1.65 lakh crore debt trap.

Deputy leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha Amarinder Singh, his wife and MLA Preneet Kaur and Congress leader Lal Singh (left) during a rally at Bhadson in Patiala district on Monday.

He said the grants being distributed by Badal during his sangat darshan programmes was being pocketed by Akali leaders. “Who will clear the debt of the state?” questioned Amarinder.

Addressing a public meeting organised by Amloh legislator Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Amarinder said: “While Punjab’s debt is increasing by the day, the Badal family is making huge profits from its businesses. Badal, who owned 80 acres of land before joining politics, now has assets worth lakhs of crores of rupees. All this is because Badal had has promoted his family business instead of watching state’s interests.”

WARNS CM AGAINST PANTHIC AGENDA
Amarinder also warned Badal against pursuing Panthic and Khalistan Agenda. “In a bid to divert people’s attention from burning issues, Badal is pursing Panthic and Khalistan agenda,” he said, adding that Badal’s Panthic agneda had ruined the state industry. Punjab was at the top in farming and industry, but now it stands nowhere at the national level, he added.

Amarinder also took a jibe at Badal for accusing him of driving a wedge between the alliance partners the SAD and BJP. “The BJP will eventually have to part ways with the Akalis as Badal has embarked on a Panthic and Khalistan agenda,” said Amarinder.

He said to chuck Hindumajority areas out of Punjab, Badal and others launched the Punjabi Suba Movement to get power. In the process, Punjab lost precious forest and water resources of Himachal Pradesh and industrial hubs to Haryana, he added.

MASS CONTACT RALLY SHIFTED FROM MAJITHA
AMRITSAR: Did some senior Congress leaders jeopardise the initial plans that were drawnup by the Amritsar District Congress Committee (DCCrural) to hold party MP Capt Amarinder Singh’s first mass contact rally in his constituency at Majitha, the pocket borough of powerful cabinet minister Bikram Singh Majithia ?

The question is being asked by a number of second-rung Congress leaders, who felt that there was no better place than Majitha for Amarinder to commence his mass contact programme in his Amritsar parliamentary constituency.