TARN TARAN: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today said chief minister Bhagwant Mann was sprinkling salt on the wounds of flood affected farmers after returning from a two day family vacation in Chennai to announce that the State helicopter he was leaving behind at Dinanagar was the answer to their prayers.
“Farmers want their bundhs to be strengthened. They want tractors, JCB machines and sand bags. They are being offered a helicopter. Does the CM want to indulge in a propaganda exercise by throwing biscuits from the air to wish away his responsibility? For his information, SAD cadre and the SGPC have been doing ‘langar sewa’ since the last four days in all affected areas. We have also tried our best to provide all material needed to strengthen bundhs and drain away flood waters from agricultural fields. It’s time the chief minister also makes things happen on the ground and announces an immediate interim relief for the flood hit instead of indulging in cheap publicity stunts”, the SAD President asserted during a public meeting here after visiting flood affected areas yesterday.
Asserting that the SAD was committed to wiping out the scourge of floods from the State once and for all, Mr Sukhbir Badal said “we will construct concrete bundhs wherever needed to save inundation of agricultural land and damage to vital infrastructure”. He also lambasted the chief minister for failing to give any compensation for crop damage for the last nearly four years. “Bhagwant Mann has failed Punjab just like he has failed his own constituency of Dhuri which he has visited thrice in the last nearly four years”.
Mr Badal, who addressed eight booth level meetings across five villages today after visiting flood affected villages yesterday, appealed to the people to reject Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate and ‘Panth da Gaddaar’ (Harpeet Singh Sandhu) who had defected to AAP for gunmen and security escort ‘Gypsies’ and support ‘Panth da Parivar’ and wife of a ‘Dharmi Fauji” – Principal Sukhwinder Kaur Randhawa in the forthcoming by-election.
Asserting that there was no comparison between the two candidates, the SAD president said Principal Randhawa’s husband left the army after the gruesome attack on the Sri Darbar Sahib in 1984 and had contributed immensely to society both in the field of education and social service. “On the other hand we have a candidate who has enjoyed all the perks of power but chose to desert the party in its time of need. Such opportunists should be rejected soundly”, he asserted.
Urging the people to unite in favour of ‘quom di jathebandi’ by rejecting both the Congress and AAP who had taken Punjab back by ten years, Mr Sukhbir Badal said “this is the time to rise as one to strengthen the SAD which alone can protect the Panth and its institutions”.
Mr Badal announced that the SAD was committed to wiping out the scourge of floods from the State once and for all. “We will construct concrete bundhs wherever needed to save inundation of agricultural land and damage to vital infrastructure”. He also announced that his priority would be to ensure ‘pucca’ houses for all poverty stricken people living in ‘kutcha’ houses. He also announced that all social welfare schemes like Atta-Daal and Shagun, which had been stopped by the erstwhile Congress and AAP governments, would be restarted. “All farmers who still do not have a tubewell will be given a tubewell connection within one month of the formation of the SAD government”, he added.
Party Tarn Taran candidate Sukhwinder Kaur Randhawa while speaking on the occasion, appealed to the people to create such a wave in favour of the SAD that booths of other parties were not installed in any village in the constituency. She said earlier also the Azad group, which had merged with the SAD after she joined the party, had been successful in getting 43 group members elected as Sarpanches despite widespread oppression unleashed by the AAP government. “We know how to fight against oppression and I am confident the people of Majha will deal a resounding defeat to AAP in the forthcoming by-elections”, she added.
Party by-election Coordinator and veteran Akali leader Gulzar Singh Ranike also spoke on the occasion besides Alwinder Singh Pakhoke, Iqbal Singh Sandhu and Gaurav Singh Valtoha. A large number of Sarpanches and Panches also joined the SAD during the SAD President’s visit.