– Anil Sareen Says, “Eat Yours, Bring Ours” — This Is the Working Style of the Punjab Government
– Taxation Department Now Tasked with Funding Delhi AAP Leaders’ Expenses
CHANDIGARH: In a shocking move, the Punjab government, under the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), has devised a plan to loot the state's traders to cover the expenses of its leaders from Delhi. The AAP government is now using the taxation department as a tool for extortion.
Punjab BJP General Secretary Anil Sareen strongly criticized this policy, stating, "There is a saying in Punjabi: ‘Eat your own, bring ours too.’ That’s exactly the state of affairs under the AAP government."
Sareen alleged that on April 18, the AAP government issued a new directive instructing Deputy Commissioners in the taxation department to ensure that each Excise and Taxation Officer (ETO) conducts four inspections every month and resolves them within the same timeframe. This would result in around 1, 200 inspections across the state each month. If an average penalty of ₹8 lakh is imposed per inspection, the monthly collection would total ₹96 crore and annually a staggering ₹1, 152 crore.
He said this would undoubtedly lead to arbitrary actions by officials and promote a culture of Inspector Raj and open corruption.
Also present at the press conference were Punjab BJP General Secretary Rakesh Rathore, State Media Head Vineet Joshi, Joint Cashier Sukhwinder Singh Goldy, and former Vice Chairman of the National Minority Commission Manjit Singh Rai.
Sareen further stated that the government has unofficially instructed officers that every inspection must yield fines of ₹8 to ₹10 lakh. This isn’t merely harassment of traders — it’s direct robbery of their hard-earned money.
He also referred to the economic losses suffered due to the closure of the Shambhu border and criticized the state government for failing to understand the challenges of a border state, choosing instead to intimidate the business community.
Sareen warned that if the government does not roll back this directive and stops forcibly extorting traders, the BJP will launch a statewide agitation in protest..