AAP’s knee-jerk reactions clear sign of panic in face of certain defeat, : Capt Amarinder Singh
Terms rise of such parties, lacking in respect for democratic institutions, as unfortunate
5 Dariya News
Chandigarh 10-Feb-2017
Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh has cornered the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) over its spate of panic reactions in the wake of the polling to the state assembly, dubbing them as a sign of the dread in Arvind Kejriwal’s party over its certain defeat.After first raising suspicions over the reliability of the EVMs, over which it has been rapped by no less than the judiciary, AAP is now making ridiculous demands, such as installation of its own cameras, at the EVM strong rooms, Captain Amarinder pointed out, adding that these knee-jerk reactions clearly underlined the party’s desperation in the light of post-poll reports in favour of the Congress.The Congress chief ministerial candidate was reacting to reports that his AAP rival from Patiala Urban, Dr. Balbir Singh, was insisting on permission from the Election Commission to install his own CCTV cameras inside the EVM strong room in the constituency even though large LED screens had already been provided to track and monitor the insides.While all candidates and parties in the fray had the right and the responsibility to collaborate with the Election Commission (EC) to ensure fool-proof security of EVMs, the sheer paranoia being displayed by the AAP leaders on this count showed that Kejriwal’s party had seen the writing on the wall and was now unnecessarily raking up irrelevant issues to prepare the ground to explain its defeat, said Captain Amarinder Captain Amarinder also castigated the tendency of AAP, particularly its national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, to lock horns with the EC on all kinds of petty issues, and said this reflected their total disregard for the democratic institutions of the country. The rise of such parties on India’s political landscape was unfortunate and needed to be nipped in the bud to prevent vitiation of the democratic environment, which forms the bedrock of the nation’s international standing and progress, he added.
Referring to the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s criticism of AAP behaviour, the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president pointed out that even the Honourable judges, having seen through the AAP gimmickry, had found the party to be indulging in senseless acts of despair.Acting on an AAP petition seeking higher security for EVMs, the court had observed that the party was “trying to deride the process by raking up such issues”, and, in a reference to the Delhi polls, remarked that, “If you win, it is fair. But otherwise, you say something else. That is not fair.” There cannot be a starker exposé of AAP’s injudicious reactions and demands, said Captain Amarinder, adding that the party’s immaturity was evident in its behaviour. “But one cannot really expect anything better from a party totally lacking in experience and made up of self-appeasing individuals whose only concern in life was to seize power by hook or by crook,” he further said, lambasting the party leadership’s antics in Punjab since it started eyeing the assembly polls.