Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal on Friday said that no political vendetta was being carried out against the State Congress president Partap Singh Bajwa, who was accused of being involved in murky land deals in the State.
Sukhbir, speaking on the issue, denied that any vendetta was being carried out against PPCC chief, saying that his party did not believe in “politics of retribution”. “The SAD does not believe in the politics of retribution. Our priority is overall development of the State,” said Sukhbir, claiming that it was Congress which had indulged in revenge politics.
“It is we who have faced vendetta at the hands of Congress during its earlier tenure in office,” he said. “If at all we have to talk about political vendetta, it must be recorded that it was the Congress Government which had registered a false case against my mother. Wasn’t that a case of political vendetta,” he said.
Deputy Chief Minister said that Revenue department had been entrusted with the inquiry into the alleged land grab by Bajwa and his brother around Chandigarh’s periphery. Replying to a query on ludhiana Metro Rail Project, he said that project cost was Rs 10,000 crore, which was being provided by the Centre as well as international companies. Keeping in view the nature of the project, it would take at least five years to be completed, he said.
On the alleged involvement of certain political leaders in cases of drug smuggling, he said that State Government had launched a massive campaign against drugs and it was committed to taking strict action against anybody caught in the smuggling net, howsoever senior or politically well-connected he may be. lashing out at Punjab Congress, he asked it to furnish details of development projects it brought, if any, in Punjab during its tenure in the State.