M A I N   N E W S

Oust-Badal call by Congress
Chander Parkash
Tribune News Service

Congress workers gather at Malout to attend the ‘Garib Kisan Mahapanchayat’ rally on Tuesday. — Photo Kulbir Beera

Malout, September 11
The central and state Congress leadership at the “garib kisan mahapanchayat” rally here today while pledging to set up the rule of “Punjabis” in the state urged people to oust the Parkash Singh Badal-led government to protect the interests of all sections of society.

While Mr Madhav Rao Scindia, deputy leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha, alleged that the NDA government at the Centre had created political instability in the country and its image at the international level had received a major setback. PPCC president Capt Amarinder Singh promised that Mr Badal would be held accountable for his every act of omission and commission.

Mr Jagmeet Singh Brar, chief architect of the rally and convener of the Congress MPs group in Parliament, while offering to relinquish all party posts for strengthening it, claimed that today’s gathering was an indication that people would soon get rid of the anti-people, anti-poor, anti-Punjabi and anti-farmer rule of Mr Badal.

Mr Moti Lal Vora, Treasurer, AICC, and in charge Punjab Congress affairs, while alleging that Mr Badal had set up a record of sorts in corruption urged him to give details of all his properties and other assets amassed by him after becoming the Chief Minister of Punjab. He added that people of Punjab had a right to know about the “achievements” of their Chief Minister.

Mr Scindia, who presided over the rally, addressing the gathering, alleged that the policies, programmes and performances of the SAD-BJP government in Punjab in the past over four years never indicated that Mr Badal was pro-farmer or pro-Punjabi.

He pointed out that it a shame that farmers of Punjab, who were considered to be prosperous all over the country, had started committing suicides due to economic crisis.

He alleged that the NDA government at the Centre had played havoc with the farmers by allowing the import of various foodgrain into India despite the fact that the same items were available in plenty in the country.

PPCC President, Amarinder Singh lashing out at Mr Badal alleged that instead of bringing farmers out of the economic crisis, the Punjab Chief Minister had fixed a price on their head by announcing that any farmer who committed suicide would fetch Rs 2.5 lakh for his kith and kin.

He pointed out that paddy in Punjab was being sold by growers at Rs 100 less than the minimum support price (MSP) announced by the Central Government in the recent past.

He said that the main achievement of Mr Badal was rampant corruption in the state where the government jobs were on sale, besides bringing the state under the debt of Rs 58,000 crore without carrying out any development work in Punjab.

Mr Vora said Mr Badal should tell people why he had not fulfilled the promise of the abolition of octroi and why he had been allowing the Khalistani elements like Dr Jagjit Singh Chohan and Wassan Singh Zaffarwal to enter Punjab. He added that Mr Badal had posed a severe threat to peace which was hard won by the previous Congress government.

In a resolution read out by Mr Brar, the Congress leadership promised to set up the rule of “Punjabis” in the state, deliver the state from debts and “inspector raj”, provide free and quality education to children, eradicate poverty, unemployment and illiteracy soft loans for poor, Scheduled Caste and backward classes and setting up of Punjab Bureau of Investigations on the pattern of the CBI to probe the corruption charter against the ruling politicians and government officials.

Those who attended the rally included Mr Balram Jakhar, Mr Varinder Kataria, Mrs Santosh Chaudhary, Mr Charanjit Singh Channi, Mrs Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Former Chief Minister, Mr Harminder Singh Jassi, Mr Avtar Brar, Mr Gulzar Singh, Mr Harbans Singh Sidhu, Mr Surinder Kapoor, Mr Sher Singh Gagowal, Mr Jasbir Singh and Mr Som Dutt Sharma (all former ministers).

Mr Kulbir Singh Sidhu, Mr Raghubir Singh, President, DCC, Mr Jasbir Singh Dimpa, Mr Manjeet Singh Chalbuti, Mr Avtar Singh Sidhu, Mr Harry Mann, Mr Kewal Krishan Aggarwal, Mr Gurjant Singh Aulakh, Mr Suresh Kumar, Mr Anil Bhola, Dr Sat Pal Bhateja and Mr Jagroop Gill (all senior Congress leaders) also attended the rally.

Earlier, addressing a joint press conference, Mr Scindia and Mr Vora said candidate for the chief ministership would be elected after taking the view of party MLAs after the elections. They added that by and large, the party high command would abide by the sentiments of the MLAs.

Mr Vora said the decision on an alliance with the CPI would be taken in a week or so. He added that Mr Amarinder Singh had been asked to hold negotiations with the CPI leadership to work out the alliance.

Mr Scindia when asked whether former Union Finance Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, could be the Chief Minister of Punjab, he said he was not supposed to comment on it as it was the prerogative of the party high command and elected MLAs of Punjab.