M A I N   N E W S

Sonia launches poll campaign
Initiates process to empower panchayats
Chander Parkash
Tribune News Service

A view of the gathering at a rally addressed by Ms Sonia Gandhi in Bathinda on Thursday. — Tribune photo by Manoj Mahajan

Bathinda, January 15
The AICC chief, Ms Sonia Gandhi, while initiating the process of empowerment of panchayats by the state government today used the opportunity to formally launch the election campaign for the next Lok Sabha election.

“It need sacrifices to direct the country towards progress. The communal, corrupt and anti-poor policies of the BJP-led NDA government will lead the country nowhere,” said Ms Gandhi while addressing a big rally organised by the state government to formally initiate the process of empowerment of panchayats and panchayati raj institutions as per the 73rd and 74th amendment of the Constitution brought by late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

While alleging that under the five-year-rule of the BJP-led NDA government, the country witnessed violence, increase in unemployment, prices of essentials, and disappointment among the people, she urged the people to see what the NDA had done for them and the country.

Urging the party men to unite and maintain discipline for getting the support of people, she added that she hoped that the country men would stand with the Congress in the need of hour.

“If the BJP and its associates are thinking that they will stop the Congress from reaching its goal, they are living in a fool’s paradise. The Congress will not stop till the fruits of prosperity and progress reached to every home in the country,” said Ms Gandhi, who was accompanied by the former Finance Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh and the AICC General Secretary, Ms Ambika Soni.

Ridiculing the BJP for wasting crores of public funds on inserting the advertisements in connection with “India Shining” and “Bharat Udye”, she pointed out that India had always been shining and alleged that all this was being done for the glorification of few BJP leaders and to mislead the people.

Making a direct reference to the concession announced by the NDA government for the people in the recent past, in her 15-minute speech, she asked the NDA leaders to explain that why they had failed to do the needful for the youths, farmers, women, traders, employees and industrialists of this country in the past more than four years. She alleged that the NDA was trying befool the people in their “mayajaal”.

“The NDA government has been running away from presenting the Budget and calling the Budget session as its leader have no capacity to do the same and know that if they will present the Budget and call Budget session they will be exposed and their real faces will come before the people,” pointed out Ms Gandhi and added this exercise of NDA leaders would not prove gainful as the people had come to know about their “motives”.

She said it was very shameful that the BJP leaders had been comparing Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee with the “hero” of Independence movement and first Prime Minister of independent India, late Jawahar Lal Nehru. She added that equally shameful was the comparison of little old (NDA) with 118-year-old Congress and comparison of 50 years rule of Congress with five-year rule of the NDA.

“Whatever little has been achieved by the present ruling set up as claimed by its leaders is due to the strong foundation of development laid by the Congress in its previous rules in the country. Now the BJP and its allies have been trying to project that previous Congress have failed to do any thing for the country,” she pointed out and added that it was very shameful that though SAD(B), which was a partner in the NDA, claimed that they were champions of farmers’ cause, a significant number of farmers committed suicide during their regime.

She claimed that it was Congress governments in Punjab and in the country whose policies brought prosperity and Green Revolution in Punjab. ‘Again the Punjab Government had initiated the process of empowering panchayats and panchayati raj institutions to fulfil the dreams of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

She promised that it would be again the Congress government which would fulfil the dreams of youth, farmers, traders, industrialists and employees.

Ms Mohsina Kidwai, General Secretary, AICC, and In Charge, Punjab Congress affairs, alleged that the BJP-led NDA government had been trying to lure the people of Punjab to seek their votes by announcing concessions for them. She added that if the people wanted a secular and integral India, the BJP-led NDA government should be ousted of power.

Capt Amarinder Singh, Chief Minister, sought votes for the party on the basis of two-year performance of his government in Punjab. He declared that Bathinda would be developed as textile city of Punjab and would be put in special economic zone (SEZ) scheme. He added that 4 per cent of income of Punjab would be given to panchayats and panchayati raj institutions (PRIs).

The Deputy Chief Minister Designate, Punjab, Mrs Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, said panchayats had been empowered so that villages could decide their fate on their own. She added that it was the Congress government of Punjab, which conducted panchayat and other grassroot elections whenever it came into power and alleged that Akalis never tried to do the same.

The PPCC President, Mr H.S. Hanspal, said the “unholy” NDA government at the Centre would disintegrate the country and people should come forward to defeat their communal agenda.

Sonia’s chopper develops snag
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, January 15
The AICC chief, Ms Sonia Gandhi, today travelled by road after the chopper in which she was to fly to Bhisiana Air Force station from the venue of the rally in the town developed a technical snag.

Ms Gandhi, who was here today to formally initiate the process of empowerment of panchayats by the Punjab Government and to address a rally, was taken to the Bhisiana Air Force station by road, 25 km away from the site of rally, from where she went to Delhi in an aircraft.

The chopper developed a technical snag after Ms Gandhi, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh and other central leaders, including Dr Manmohan Singh, boarded it.

Earlier, Ms Gandhi was brought to the field hostel situated in the GNDTP colony in the chopper from the Bhisiana Air Force station. She was taken to site of the water treatment plant, located near Rose Garden, by road which she later inaugurated. She was again taken to field hostel and then flown to the venue of rally on chopper, situated at stone’s throw away distance from the field hostel.

Sidelights

• AICC chief Sonia Gandhi today breached her security cover and came down from the stage and mingled with people after addressing the rally.

• Mr Hanspal in his speech kept on saying that he would not speak a length while he took considerable time addressing the gathering. — TNS