The Shiromani Akali Dal on Saturday reacted strongly to the statement of Capt Amarinder that he wanted to contest against Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal from lambi Assembly constituency saying he should do this at the earliest.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal urged Pradesh Congress president Amarinder Singh to take quick permission from the party’s central leadership to contest from lambi before the nomination filing process comes to an end. Sukhbir described this latest development as a “pathetic and last ditch attempt by a failed raja to stem the rot in his sinking ship”.
In a statement here, the SAD president said Amarinder had been resorting to cheap theatrics since the last few months, including false promises of a farm loan waiver which had not been reflected in the party’s manifesto, and the development that he had asked for permission to contest against Parkash Singh Badal was another ploy to gain cheap publicity.
Sukhbir said the fact of the matter was that the Congress was falling apart like a house of cards. “There is widespread revolt against the manner in which party tickets are being distributed from Delhi. Some tickets are being changed days after being allocated. Many Congress men are passing no confidence motions against Amarinder and he has become jittery. Added to this is the fact that the party has not announced its Chief Ministerial candidate and both Manpreet Badal and Navjot Sidhu are claiming that they have been promised the Chief Ministerial berth by the party”.
The SAD president claimed in view of these developments, Amarinder had hit upon this idea to contest against CM to project himself as the Chief Ministerial candidate, especially since he was finding the going tough in his home seat of Patiala. “Amarinder probably wants to go down like a martyr. He wants to give the impression to the high command that he lost Patiala because he had to give time in lambi, where he is sure to suffer a humiliating defeat”.
Urging Amarinder to convince the Congress high command quickly to field him from lambi, Sukhbir said, “The people of lambi will teach him that they respect those who stay and work amongst them like Sardar Badal and not fly by night operators like him. Amarinder had proudly said that this will be his last election, thinking he was standing as a chief ministerial candidate. After the people of lambi are through with you, you will not want to fight an election ever again”.