The Congress and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Sunday accused the AAP government of Punjab of "misusing" state machinery to ensure the rejection of nomination papers of opposition-backed candidates for the October 15 panchayat polls.
Rejecting the charge, AAP leader and MP Malvinder Singh Kang asserted that the state government was committed to maintaining transparency and criticised the previous governments of the Congress, Akali Dal and the BJP for "abusing power and undermining the electoral process".
Elections to gram panchayats in Punjab will be held on October 15.
Leader of Opposition in the Punjab assembly Partap Singh Bajwa alleged that the AAP government was "systematically dismantling democratic processes in the panchayat elections by exploiting state power and resorting to outright coercion".
Bajwa also accused the Punjab chief minister of turning a blind eye to AAP's "orchestrated manipulation, exposing his government's desperation to cling to power by any means necessary".
In a statement, the senior Congress leader described the panchayat election process as "nothing short of a sham", accusing AAP leaders of "issuing orders to block development and panchayat officers to cancel nominations of opposition candidates on fabricated grounds".
"This is a calculated and sinister plot directed from the top. AAP MLAs and their cronies have hijacked the election machinery, ensuring their candidates sail through while opposition candidates are held up for hours or disqualified on spurious technicalities. This is not an election, this is an autocratic takeover of our villages," Bajwa alleged.
He also urged the Punjab State Election Commission to step in and "prevent the further erosion of democratic norms".
"It is high time the state election commission intervenes to ensure that these elections are conducted fairly," Bajwa added.
The SAD accused the AAP government of "throttling the voice of democracy by preventing opposition members from filing their nominations on one pretext or another".
The party appealed to all its workers and leaders who had been allegedly prevented from filing their nomination papers to reach the party office on Monday with necessary documents and "evidence of wrongdoing" by AAP leaders and government officials.
Senior party leader Daljit Singh Cheema said the party has constituted a high-level legal team to file necessary petitions in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Cheema said the party received complaints of "large-scale rejection" of nomination papers of candidates from opposition parties for the post of sarpanch and panch from different parts of the state.
"We have been approaching the State Election Commission with our complaints but they have not been addressed," he said.
Meanwhile, Kang said that the upcoming panchayat elections are the cornerstone of democracy and noted that the AAP government is dedicated to empowering the people of Punjab, making sure they can engage in the democratic process without fear.
"The elections are not just a formality. They are an essential event in our democratic system, and we want every citizen to participate actively and freely," he stated.
Kang also criticised previous governments for allegedly abusing their power and undermining the electoral process.
"For over two decades, panchayat elections in Punjab have been marred by manipulation and violence. The current AAP government, however, is committed to transparency," he said.
Kang presented data comparing the number of nominations for the upcoming elections with that of 2018.
"In the last panchayat elections, when the Congress was in power, 48,111 nomination papers were submitted for the position of sarpanch. In contrast, this time, under AAP's governance, that number has surged to 52,825," he said.
Similarly, for the post of 'panch', the data shows that in 2018, there were 1,62,383 nominations as against 1,66,338 nominations this time.
"This is a clear indication that our government is encouraging citizens to take part in democracy, and they are responding positively," Kang said.
