Lambi (Pb), Feb 7 (PTI) Former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Monday alleged that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has put the stamp of approval on “corrupt activities” of Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi by declaring him as the party’s CM face for the Assembly polls.
Gandhi on Sunday declared Channi as his party’s chief ministerial face.
“Even though ill-gotten wealth had been recovered from the chief minister’s nephew, who had also confessed that this was on account of money received from the sand mafia and bribes for postings and transfers, the Congress high command had chosen to stand with him,” the Shiromani Akali Dal leader alleged.
“This raises question mark about the probity of the high command as well as the Gandhi family, which has chosen to wholeheartedly support a corrupt chief minister,” she said in a statement.
Bhupinder Singh, alias Honey, the arrested nephew of Channi, has “accepted” that he received Rs 10 crore cash in lieu of facilitating sand mining operations and transfer or posting of officials in the border state, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) claimed in a statement on Monday.
The Bathinda MP said it was surprising that the Congress, which had “presided over the sand and liquor mafia, shut down the SC scholarship scheme for Dalit students and even indulged in corruption in supply of vaccines and central ration received during the Covid pandemic, was now trying to befool people again through a change in the chief ministerial face.” She said while Amarinder Singh had “reneged” on all promises made to Punjabis, Channi had only indulged in “cheap publicity stunts” during his three-month tenure.
“This government has also increased the state debt by Rs 1 lakh crore even though it has not done any public work,” Badal added.
Attacking Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal, Badal said, “He is even more devious than the Congress party.” She said Kejriwal was trying to “befool” Punjabis by making announcements like providing Rs 1,000 per month to all women in Punjab even though he has not extended this facility in Delhi during the last eight years.
She said, “There was also a real danger that Punjab’s river waters could be sold off to Haryana and Delhi under Kejriwal’s watch.” “We all know that Bhagwant Mann is a dummy chief ministerial candidate. In case Kejriwal orders him to sign away Punjab’s rights over its river waters, he will not have the guts to refuse him. Punjab lost out in similar manner earlier when Indira Gandhi forced then chief minister Darbara Singh to part with the state’s river waters,” she said.
“This is why the state needs a regional party which has a time-tested record of safeguarding the interests of the State,” Badal added. PTI CHS VSD RDK RDK
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