Punjab’s all opposition parties along with senior Congress leader Sunil Jakhar on Wednesday slammed the Congress-led Punjab Government over the “security lapse” during the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Punjab visit. At the same time, the farmers — who have been protesting against the Prime Minister’s visit under “Go Back Modi” campaign—claimed that the protests by the people forced Modi to cancel his Ferozepur rally.
BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh on Wednesday blasted the Congress Government for “engineering a security threat” for the Prime Minister. “It’s a matter of shame for the Channi Government for not allowing the Prime Minister to address the public meeting,” said Chugh.
Squarely blaming Channi and Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu for “joining hands with subversive and anti-national forces” to foil the democratic right of the Prime Minister and the BJP to address public meetings, Chugh said that it was the responsibility of the Congress Government to ensure law and order for the PM’s visit, “but entire Punjab is hanging its head in shame today”.
He went on to blame Channi and Sidhu for “dancing to the tune of Pakistan ISI. Time has come for Punjab to wake up to nefarious designs of the two”.
Meanwhile, Punjab BJP president Ashwani Sharma blamed the Channi-led Punjab Government for the security lapse. He claimed that the Congress got scared of the event and tried all possible tricks to scuttle Modi’s visit.
Sharma alleged that the Punjab Police was instructed to prevent people from attending the rally. “A large number of buses and other vehicles, carrying BJP workers and other people, were stranded....The police connived with protesters blocking the movement of those headed for the rally,” he alleged.
REFLECTIVE OF TOTAL COLLAPSE OF LAW AND ORDER MACHINERY IN PUNJAB: SUKHBIR
SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Wednesday said that the major security lapse was reflective of the total collapse of the law and order machinery in Punjab and that Chief Minister Channi was solely to blame for this crisis.
“The incident makes it clear that there is no government whatsoever in the State. The infighting in the Punjab Congress has made the Chief Minister totally ineffective and the situation has become such that there is no clear command over the law and order machinery. This was witnessed today also with the Chief Minister and Home Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa speaking in two different voices over the same incident,” he said.
Sukhbir said that the situation was of the Punjab Congress party’s own making.
CAPT CALLS FOR PRESIDENT'S RULE IN PUNJAB
Punjab’s former Chief Minister and BJP’s new ally Capt Amarinder Singh on Wednesday called for the President’s rule in the state after a breach was reported in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s security.
Capt Amarinder said that Channi Government had utterly failed in ensuring law and order in the state. “If we have to keep our state safe and keep law and order system here, then I think President’s rule should be imposed,” said the Punjab Lok Congress president, after addressing a rally, which was also scheduled to be addressed by Modi.
Capt Amarinder, who left Congress to form his own party, has allied with BJP to contest the upcoming polls.
JUST NOT ACCEPTABLE, IT'S AGAINST PANJABIYAT: JAKHAR
Senior Congress leader and Campaign Committee chairman for 2022 polls Sunil Jakhar lashed out at his own party's government over the issue. Taking to Twitter, he said: “What has happened today is just not acceptable. It's against Panjabiyat. A secure passage for the Prime Minister of India to address the BJP's political rally in Ferozepur should have been ensured. That's how democracy works.”