The announcement of Assembly polls in Punjab has once again brought the emotive Sutlej Yamuna link (SYl) canal issue to the centre-stage, raising the political temperature in neighboring Haryana as well.
While the faction-ridden Haryana Congress remains divided over supporting its party unit in Punjab during elections, the Indian National lok Dal (INlD) has made it clear that the party will not campaign for its former alliance partners in Punjab due to their anti-Haryana stand on contentious SYl canal issue.
In Haryana Congress, former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and party state chief Ashok Tanwar, who have been at loggerheads for a long time, have difference of opinion on campaigning for the party in Punjab, considering the controversial water-sharing issue.
A day after the senior Congress leader Hooda announced that he will not campaign for the party in Punjab even if the party president Sonia Gandhi asks him to do so, Ashok Tanwar termed the statement as “immoral”.
“The party has given us responsibility to campaign for Congress candidates in Punjab and it would be “immoral” to go against party high command,” said Tanwar while talking to The Pioneer.
Hooda had on Tuesday said that until party’s Punjab Congress chief Capt. Amarinder does not assure Haryana of SYl canal water, he would not go for campaigning for Congress even if party’s high command ask him to do so.
“Capt. Amarinder should publically announce that SYl water would be given to Haryana if he comes to power in Punjab. Only then, I would campaign for the Congress,” said the two-time Chief Minister Hooda.
Criticising the former Chief Minister for such statement, Tanwar said that the SYl issue is not new and this should not be raised like this... If somebody does not want to campaign for the party, it is his prerogative but Haryana Congress leaders will campaign for the party in Punjab, said the state Congress chief.
The INlD, on the other hand, has stated that they would not campaign for their former alliance partners, SAD and BJP in Punjab.
“The INlD will not campaign for former alliance partners SAD and BJP in Punjab assembly polls. Both parties have taken anti-Haryana stand on SYl issue,” said INlD Haryana president Ashok Arora while talking to The Pioneer.
Arora said that Congress, BJP and SAD are not at all concerned about the public and are trying to get political mileage on SYl issue.
Asserting that INlD would start digging the SYl canal if the Centre fails to do so by February 23, the INlD leader said that other political parties are betraying the people on water-sharing issue.
The SAD had fought the 2014 Haryana assembly elections in alliance with the INlD but the latter had snapped ties with SAD last year over SYl issue. The INlD also had an alliance with the BJP in Haryana but the alliance ended after their dismal performance in lok Sabha polls 2009.
Meanwhile, Haryana’s BJP unit has geared up for assembly polls in Punjab, where the party has alliance with ruling SAD. Haryana Finance Minister, Capt. Abhimanyu was appointed as BJP’s Punjab election co-incharge while other senior state leaders have been asked to support the Punjab’s party unit in election campaigning.
After Supreme Court’s verdict on SYl canal in Haryana’s favour, the issue has turned into a full-scale political war between the two neighboring states.
The SAD-BJP led Punjab Government has already announced not to “allow a single drop of water” to be taken from the state. Also, Congress MP Capt. Amaridner Singh and MlAs in Punjab had resigned after the SC decision on SYl canal.