Dependent upon the Centre for resolution of issues plaguing the State, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Friday indicated that the State was not on the warpath with the powers-to-be in Delhi.
Not hesitant to meet the Prime Minister and the Union Ministers, Capt Amarinder did not mince his words to appreciate the BJP-led Central Government on Friday during a function at the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Interestingly, the Chief Minister expressed satisfaction that the BJP Prime Ministers, including former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the incumbent Narendra Modi, were treating the Congress Government in Punjab at par with others.
Moreover, Capt Amarinder was seen expressing gratitude to the Centre for the cooperation it was extending to Punjab.
Notably, the Congress Government in Punjab is depending on the Centre for fulfilling its major pre-poll promise of complete farm loan waiver. In fact, facing an acute financial crunch, the State Government needs the Centre’s help all the more.
So far, Capt Amarinder has met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi four times in just five months, since he formed the Government in March this year, while his predecessor Parkash Singh Badal was seen struggling to get Modi’s appointment to take up vital issues.
In less than a month of taking over as the Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder had met Modi seeking debt waiver for Punjab farmers. He again met Modi in April to seek permission to sell Punjab’s surplus power to Pakistan or Nepal.
Capt Amarinder again met Modi seeking his support in resolving State’s agrarian crisis, directing central agencies to expedite probe in sacrilege and other cases, tackling terrorism, promoting industry among other things, and only recently, to seek Centre’s help in farm loan waiver.
Even Capt Amarinder has also been meeting Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, whom he defeated in Amritsar lok Sabha polls in 2014, several times to seek financial packages.
The meetings come as a sharp contrast to the SAD-BJP combine’s pre-elections claims that the State Government can run smoothly only if the same party is in power at the Centre.
Capt Amarinder, by his visits, apparently is sending across a message that his party has no qualms about approaching its political rivals in larger interest of the State.
“It’s obvious that no State Government can run without Centre’s help...But, we should not read much between the lines here. Capt Amarinder is only appreciating things that should be appreciated...Only today, he has opposed Centre’s decision to extend sunset clause to neighbouring hill States,” a senior Government functionary told The Pioneer.
Capt Amarinder’s affection for the Centre was reflected during his speech after inaugurating the Digitized New Section library of Punjab and Haryana High Court.
The Chief Minister rued the State’s “poor fiscal health” while responding to the Bar Association’s demand for Rs 5 crore for upgrading the library and other infrastructure at the Bar Council.
“Rs 2.08 lakh crore debt and huge fiscal deficit that my Government had inherited is a massive problem but I must thank the Centre for the cooperation it is extending to Punjab,” he said.
Recalling how former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh always told him that as Prime Minister it was his duty to extend support to all the States, including the Akalis in Punjab, Capt Amarinder said the BJP Prime Ministers, including Modi, were treating the Congress Government in Punjab in the same way.