The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today said former Chief minister Amarinder Singh should stop showing his alleged concern for the people of Punjab by sitting long distance and instead should try to be among the people like the senior SAD leadership.Terming Amarinder's latest statement as something which he might not even know about, SAD general secretary and spokesman Maheshinder Grewal said the Congress leader was only trying to prove his presence to Party president Sonia Gandhi. "The truth of the matter is that Amarinder did not go back to Amritsar after being elected as an mp from there and left Patiala one day before polling took place recently and is not likely to visit the city soon"."You (Amarinder) passed your time as chief minister of the State during 2002- 2007 playing polo and hosting late night parties besides squandering the interests of Punjab to liquor dons and trotting up a debt to GSDP ratio of 45 per cent, but have now suddenly developed an interest in its financial status", Mr Grewal said.
The SAD spokesman said it was a fact that Mr Amarinder Singh, who had been shifted to Delhi by the Congress, was now desperate to make himself relevant in Punjab by issuing pisive statements to create a wedge between the SAD and the BJP. "This will however not succeed as the SAD- BJP combine is taking Punjab into a new era of development with the support of the centre", he added.Terming chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal as leaders who deliver, the SAD spokesman said Mr Amarinder could be forgiven due to his continuous absence from Punjab, parliament and even the country for being ignorant that Punjab had been sanctioned road projects worth Rs 10,000 crore during the last few months alone. "Does this not amount to money flowing into the State? Won't these projects give a stimulus to the State's economy? Grewal asked Amarinder asking him to be man enough to thank the NDA government for the largesse shown to Punjab on this front rather than bickering about issues which were still under discussion.
Speaking on the issue of central grants, the SAD spokesman said Amarinder should understand that people were no longer living under feudal yolk and understood his deceitful statement for what it was. "Central funds are received by each State. However in case of Punjab despite several entreaties the erstwhile UPA government never released funds as per our specific needs. Also a State like Punjab which makes a higher contribution to the GSDP was never given its due by the UPA. Even it's share in central taxes was reduced from 2.4 per cent to 1.3 per cent. The Bathinda airport was not allowed to become functional and no major project was given clearance. This is what we mean when we state that Punjab suffered discrimination at the hands of the UPA. It should not be too hard to understand for even Amarinder despite his other pastimes apart from politics which take away all his time", the SAD spokesman added.
Mr Grewal also made it clear that the State was committed to pursuing its claim to a special financial package for the financial loss suffered by it while fighting the nation's war against terrorism. "Chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal will soon call upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance minister Arun Jaitely in this regard", he added.Lastly Mr Maheshinder Grewal urged Amarinder not to insult Punjabis by terming the "Sangat Darshan" programme initiated by chief minister Parkash Singh Badal as archaic. "We know you are comfortable only in a 'darbari' culture and like to function through sycophants. However you cannot begrudge Badal Sahab for going among the people unmindful of heat and dust unlike you and solving their problems on the spot. Please shed your bias against the common man and liberate your mind from feudal shackles which force you to live in an air conditioned environment surrounded by a coterie of sycophants", the SAD spokesman added.