Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Monday said the Congress has always remained inimical to the interests of Punjab and Punjabis, especially the Sikhs.Dubbing the Congress as "enemy number one" of Punjab, Badal said the interests of the state's people, particularly the Sikhs, were not safe in the party's hands."The Congress has always bartered away the state's interests for its narrow political motives," the chief minister said at a 'Sadbhavana' (goodwill) rally in this Sikh religious town near Amritsar.
"The Congress has always ruined the state economically, socially and politically. It even went to the extent of destroying the glorious traditions of the Sikh community through direct interference in its religious affairs," the chief minister said."The Sikhs can never imagine pardoning the Congress and its leadership for the anti-Sikh riots in 1984 as well as the army's Operation Bluestar at the Sikh holy place Harmandar Sahib (Golden Temple) in Amritsar," Badal added.Shiromani Akali Dal president and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal said his party alone stood for the interests of Punjab's people.