After Mamata Banerjee, Arvind Kejriwal accuses Centre of withholding funds

Arvind Kejriwal said the Akali and Congress governments didn't want the welfare of Punjab.

Published on: Dec 17, 2023, 18:10:58 IST

By HT News Desk

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New Delhi: AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday claimed the Centre was withholding funds belonging to Punjab to stall the development work his party's government had been carrying out in the state. He was in the state to take part in the Vikas Kranti rally.

Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal during the flagging off ceremony of 500 new electric buses at IP Depot, in New Delhi on December 14. (Hindustan Times)

He said the Akali and Congress governments didn't want the welfare of Punjab.

He claimed his political rivals asked the central government to stop the Punjab government's finds.

"All the parties are upset and they have turned against us. They came together and approached the Centre, asking it to do something to stop our work. (They told the Centre) do not allow them (AAP) to work. If they (AAP) do so much work, then we (rival parties) will be doomed," said Kejriwal.

"All these parties went to the Centre, which did the dirty work. They stopped Punjab's funds for health," he added.

Kejriwal is the second INDIA leader to have alleged that the Centre had stopped funds for state governments. His INDIA ally Mamata Banerjee had been fighting a protracted battle against the Centre claiming it had stopped West Bengal's funds for MNREGA.

Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee recently said the central government must provide funds for social welfare schemes in the state or step down.

“The Centre is not giving our share of GST (goods and services tax). It is not giving us funds for housing and rural employment schemes. Either you release our funds or leave the chair. I will be in Delhi with some MPs on December 18, 19 and 20. I have sought time from the Prime Minister. I hope the Prime Minister will give me time,” she said last week.

Also read: Release Bengal’s funds or step down: Mamata Banerjee tells Centre

Banerjee is currently in the national capital to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the alleged fund freeze.

Kejriwal further slammed the Centre for withholding ₹5,500 crore of rural development funds for constructing roads in mandis.

The Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP have been loggerheads in Delhi and Punjab over a host of issues.

In Delhi, where AAP has been in government since 2013, Kejriwal has levelled allegations of the Centre stopping its development work through the Lieutenant Governor. Two of the party's key leaders -- Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh -- have been in jail in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam.

Kejriwal's AAP is the BJP's biggest political rival in Delhi and Punjab for the upcoming 2024 general elections.

With inputs from PTI

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HT News Desk
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