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Ludhiana: Bittu flays CM Mann over ‘delay’ in cops’ salaries
Bittu said that Punjab chief minister of Bhagwant Mann should clarify to the people why the salary of 85,000 employees of Punjab Police is not being released
Member Parliament and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Ludhiana Lok Sabha constituency Ravneet Singh Bittu criticised Punjab government over delay in paying salaries to 85,000 police personnel of the state. Many police personnel had raised the issue and shared their agony in various WhatsApp groups.
Bittu said that Punjab chief minister of Bhagwant Mann should clarify to the people why the salary of 85,000 employees of Punjab Police is not being released. Lambasting the “false claims” of the chief minister that there was no dearth of money with the government, Bittu questioned what would be the condition of the state where the law enforcement agency personnel are not getting their salaries.
Bittu added that the salary of March was not paid even as April was about to finish. “The state is heading for elections and the police force has major role in executing it peacefully. What will the police employees standing on checkpoints or road do if he is not paid by the government for the last one and half month. As we all know, the school admissions, uniforms, books and fees also are paid in this period. The same has shaken the family budget of the employees and they cannot carry on with their routine needs,” Bittu said.
Bittu asked the chief minister to stop handing out “hollow claims” and admit the state was bankrupt, or disclose the reason behind the delay in release of the salary of police force.
Even if there was some problem with the state treasury, the government should have prepared a backup plan, he said, and added that the morale of the force was very low, but because of their discipline, they couldn’t protest or go on strike. “The CM has broken all the records of delay in the salary which never happened earlier. What will happen to our law and order if the morale of the force is not given a boost. The government employees of various other departments have also been crying over the government’s laxity in paying salaries,” he alleged.
Bittu joined the BJP at the party headquarters in New Delhi earlier in March, in a major setback to Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
Bittu is the grandson of former Punjab CM Beant Singh and the son of former state minister Tej Parkash Singh.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, Bittu defeated Simarjeet Singh Bains from the Lok Insaaf Party by 76,372 votes.
