SAS NAGAR: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Sunday stated that the country is facing an oil and LPG crisis due to the failure of the foreign policy of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre. He also raised serious concerns over the excessive centralisation of power in the hands of a few leaders at the Union government, warning that such a trend is dangerous for democracy.
CM Bhagwant Singh Mann further questioned Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the unchecked cross-border drug supply, asked the Union Home Minister to explain the failure of central agencies, and cautioned that the Centre’s treaty with the United States could severely jeopardise the interests of farmers. He also remarked that despite frequent foreign tours by the Prime Minister, the country is facing worsening diplomatic ties and growing economic distress.
Speaking to media persons on the sidelines of the Progressive Punjab Investors Summit, CM Bhagwant Singh Mann stated, “Due to the failure of the foreign policy of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, the country is facing the oil and LPG crisis.”
He remarked that United States President Donald Trump, whom Prime Minister Narendra Modi describes as a close friend, should have consulted him before waging a full-fledged war against Iran. “However, the Union government remained unfazed about the scenario emerging out of this war, due to which the people of the country are today facing this crisis, ” he added.
CM Bhagwant Singh Mann noted that the present circumstances reflect a serious lapse in the country’s foreign policy framework. “This is a clear failure of the foreign policy of the country, and it seems that there is no such policy at the current point of time, ” he said.
Highlighting the Prime Minister’s frequent overseas visits, the Chief Minister said that such travel has distanced the leadership from the realities faced by people in the country. “The Prime Minister is mostly on foreign tours, due to which he is not aware of the problems faced by the countrymen, ” he stated, adding that the situation currently prevailing in the country has never been witnessed before. “In a month the Prime Minister spends 15 days on foreign shores, but his relations with other countries are far away from being cordial, ” CM Bhagwant Singh Mann added.
The Chief Minister said, “The country should have foreseen the LPG and oil crisis and adequate arrangements should have been done well in time to avoid any inconvenience to the general public, ” he stated.