Accusing the SAD-BJP led Government of failing to meet aspirations of young generation, Congress candidate for Dhuri by-poll Simar Partap Singh Barnala on Sunday called upon the youths to reject people with “archaic thinking”. Simar, grandson of former Chief Minister Surjit Singh Barnala, called upon the people in general and the youth in particular to reject people with “archaic thinking” and vote for “change to usher Punjab in a better tomorrow”.
Taking a dig at Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal, Simar accused him of befooling the youth by selling them dreams only even as the State’s economic situation had gone from bad to worse. “The beginning must be made from this by-election itself as the people were fed up with the Akali Dal-BJP alliance,” he said. “The Akali Dal-BJP Government has failed to meet the aspirations of younger generation as there are no employment avenues in the State. Punjab missed the IT revolution for which the present Government is responsible,” he said.
“This Government in general and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal in particular had only been befooling the youth by selling them dreams while the situation had gone from bad to worse with no sign of immediate recovery”, he said. “What to talk of the poll-promise of hike (in old age and other pensions), people were not getting pensions even at the existing rate in time and the backlog at times had been running into months. Similar was the situation with Shagun scheme and unemployment allowance,” he alleged.
He said that the much-touted promise to provide laptops to the students with data cards had already been abandoned. “This Government is suffering from trust deficit and as such, the people must take the first step to teach it a lesson and pave the way for change,” he said. Dhuri by-poll, which will be held on April 11, will see direct fight between the Congress candidate and SAD-BJP alliance candidate Gobind Singh longowal. The bypoll was necessitated after Congress MlA Arvind Khanna resigned from the Assembly in January.
BADAl GOVT FAIlED PUNJAB ON All FRONTS
Punjab Congress president Partap Singh Bajwa on Sunday said that anger in the people was welling up as they were fed up with Parkash Singh Badal Government which has failed on all fronts. Bajwa referred to the Dhuri town having turned into dharna ground with every section of the society protesting here for acceptance of their demands, including anganwadi workers, mid-day meal scheme and National Rural Health Mission workers besides several other organisations.
“This is reflective of pent up feelings amongst the people and increasing resentment,” he said. Challenging Badal to come out with the list of promises that his Government had fulfilled after coming into power, Bajwa said that Akali Dal had come out with a colourful manifesto but the same seemed to have now been painted with black brush. PPCC chief said that the coffers of this Government were empty and no development work was going on. He called upon the people to give a befitting reply to this failed Government as the change should start with Dhuri. “It was the time for the people to give a crushing defeat which had come into power only by misleading them.
“This is a Government of the mafia and for the mafia. This mafia is controlling liquor, sand and cable network and the interests of the ruling leaders in all such shady deals are too well known. It is this Government that is responsible for increasing drug menace. It is not without reason that the names of the ministers of this Government have surfaced in rackets,” he added.