Capt scotches 'rumours' of meeting with Amit Shah

Congress MP and Punjab’s former Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Tuesday termed as ‘rumours’ the local media reports 

that suggested he met BJP national president Amit Shah in Goa recently.

‘Capt Amarinder, talking to media persons at Mundi Maur village in Sultanpur lodhi en route to Tarn Taran to address a ‘Jan Samprak’ (public meeting) rally, 

said that he never met Shah in Goa.

‘Asked if he was leaning towards the BJP after he had lauded the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for granting heritage status to Amritsar, he said that Jaitley and the Centre have given AIIMS, IIM to Punjab and it was his “moral duty” as an MP to appreciate their gestures to the state. However, he demanded that the Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) be converted into AIIMS 

for the benefit of the Doaba region.

Asked about he being appointed Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) chief, Capt Amarinder said that it was up to the party high command to decide when they want him to lead Congress in the state.

Replying to a question whether he would float a new party if he fails to get the PPCC chief post, he said that these are matters to be discussed later on.

The former Chief Minister said that the ruling SAD-BJP alliance in Punjab has created a mess with the state economy and put it in shambles. There was rise in drug addiction and unemployment among youths, he said.

Congress party, he claimed, would win the 2017 Assembly elections and work for the welfare of the state. Further, commenting on the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s one year show, Capt Amarinder said that the PM has not performed well and has failed to live up to the expectations of the people.