Sangrur (Punjab), Aug 11 (PTI) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann lashed out at the Badal family on Monday for allegedly “ruining” the state politically, economically and religiously”, and dared Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal to list at least one achievement during his party’s long “misrule” in the state.
Addressing a gathering here, Mann alleged that the Badals had only worked for “expanding” their business, without bothering about Punjab and its people.
He said the period from 2007 to 2017 was the “darkest” in the state’s history, when transport, cable, sand, drug and other mafia groups flexed their muscles.
He dared the SAD chief to list at least one achievement of their government during this period, adding that the drug menace spread its tentacles after it was allegedly patronised by the Akali regime.
The chief minister said his government is serving Punjab and its people with missionary zeal and these leaders are now being made to pay for their “sins”.
Now, the leaders responsible for heinous crimes against Punjab are being put behind bars, he said.
While his government is fighting them, certain political parties were hand in glove with them and offering them protection, he alleged.
Targeting Badal, Mann claimed that the SAD chief neither has any knowledge of Punjab’s culture, topography, religion nor even of the basic Punjabi language.
The son of former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal is “desperate” to grab power in Punjab, he claimed, adding that he had already predicted that the SAD was formed in 1920 and will be “eliminated” in 2019.
The Akali Dal, which has a rich legacy, has now been relegated to a party of drug smugglers, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader charged.
Likewise, he said the Congress is a “divided house”, with every leader desperate to occupy the chief minister’s chair.
These leaders have no vision for the state as they are only bothered about satiating their greed for power and vesting it by hook or crook, Mann said.
The chief minister said he might not have experience in “plundering” the wealth of people but he has an expertise in sharing the sorrows of the public and resolving their issues.
He said his predecessors never bothered about the state or its people, adding that these haughty leaders always gave importance to their families and vested interests rather than working for the state.
Earlier, Mann dedicated the Jathedar Kartar Singh Darvesh Senior Secondary School in Sangrur, named after the freedom fighter, to people. The school has been upgraded as a School of Eminence at a cost of Rs 3.4 crore.
He said the students and teachers of the school have been provided with all the necessary equipment and facilities and various works have been carried out for the institute’s overall transformation, including the construction and renovation of an auditorium, entrance gate, stage, park, shed, mid-day meal kitchen, workshops, laboratories, drinking water facilities and classrooms.
Mann also dedicated the Government Nursing Training School in Sangrur to people. The school has been built at a cost of Rs 7.81 crore.
The chief minister said this ultra-modern building offers a three-year GNM (General Nursing and Midwifery) course and the institute is equipped with a hostel, modern laboratories, a mess with high-quality food, smart classrooms, a modern library, school bus service and various other facilities.
He said the institution will prove to be a blessing for students from rural areas, as earlier, they had to travel to Bathinda, Patiala or other distant places to pursue nursing education.
Mann also flagged off 12 mobile cancer-screening buses that will go door-to-door, conducting camps in various villages and towns to screen people and raise awareness about the disease. PTI CHS RC
Category: Breaking News
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