Chandigarh, July 18 (IANS) Punjab Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislator Kuldeep Dhaliwal on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the state was a “flop show”.
He said the visit was not only disappointing for Punjab but also that his statements were hollow and intended to mislead the people.
Dhaliwal launched a direct attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), saying those who can steal donations in the name of a sacred place like the Ram Mandir can never be honest towards the nation. He told the media in Amritsar that the BJP openly stole donations by exploiting the faith of people across the country in the name of the construction of the Ram Mandir.
Dhaliwal said the Union Government has withheld thousands of crores of the state’s Rural Development Fund (RDF) and other funds.
“When we take loans for Punjab’s development, they accuse us of mismanagement, whereas the truth is that the Union Government is sitting on Punjab’s rightful funds,” he said.
He added that every loan being taken by the State Government “is not meant to benefit any industrialist, but is being spent on hospitals, schools, colleges, roads, healthcare facilities, pensions for the poor and public welfare schemes. Punjab’s money is being spent only on the people of Punjab.”
On the issue of blending 20 per cent ethanol in petrol, Dhaliwal termed it another burden on the common people’s pocket.
He questioned under which law “this is being imposed on the people”. He said it was claimed ethanol blending would make fuel cheaper, but instead prices have increased further, placing a direct burden on the common man.
He said this policy “is benefiting a few selected companies while the common people are paying the price”.
He added that instead of delivering speeches in Punjab, the Prime Minister should tell the nation under which law this arrangement has been implemented and what benefit the public has received from it.
On the issue of drugs, Dhaliwal held the BJP accountable, saying that drugs spread in Punjab during the BJP–Shiromani Akali Dal alliance government.
He said Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has been continuously urging the Union government to install modern anti‑drone systems along Punjab’s 532‑km international border to stop the smuggling of drugs and weapons through drones from Pakistan. Still, the Centre has not taken any effective step in this direction till date.
Dhaliwal said the Prime Minister remained completely silent on the issue of farmers as well. Despite the martyrdom of 720 farmers and the promise of Rs 1,600 crore for flood victims, the Union Government has not given even a single penny till date.
–IANS
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