Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has said that cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu was changing his stand frequently in hope for a better bargaining with one or the other party. He said this in reaction to Sidhu’s announcement that his forum, Awaaz-e-Punjab, won’t be a political party.
Badal, who was talking to reporters after a political conference to mark the Gurta Gaddi Diwas of Sri Guru Angad Dev, said, “Sidhu is aware that people will not support a person who has backstabbed his parent party, so, he stopped himself short of floating a political party.”
Terming the Uri terror attack as an onslaught on sovereignty of India, the CM said the entire country must unite against terrorism. Badal said in case of a war between India and Pakistan, Punjab will suffer the most.
Replying to a query on replacing the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), Badal said there was no such move. He said after the recent judgment of the Supreme Court on Sehajdhari issue, the Centre will issue a notification for the new house of the religious body and a meeting will take place.
Addressing the gathering, Badal exhorted the people to vote out the anti-Punjab forces — the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party. He said people who wanted to disturb the hard-earned peace in the state were hobnobbing with these parties. Accusing Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh for “misleading” the people on the Satluj Yamuna Link (SYL) issue, the CM said it was a wellknown fact that the Amritsar MP had welcomed the then prime minister Indira Gandhi, who had came to Punjab for the ground-breaking ceremony of the canal. “Those voting for the Congress will be the enemies of Punjab,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}Addressing the gathering, Badal exhorted the people to vote out the anti-Punjab forces — the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party. He said people who wanted to disturb the hard-earned peace in the state were hobnobbing with these parties. Accusing Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh for “misleading” the people on the Satluj Yamuna Link (SYL) issue, the CM said it was a wellknown fact that the Amritsar MP had welcomed the then prime minister Indira Gandhi, who had came to Punjab for the ground-breaking ceremony of the canal. “Those voting for the Congress will be the enemies of Punjab,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}Terming the AAP a ‘bunch of unprincipled leaders’, Badal reiterated that going by the turmoil in the party, AAP will vanish from the political scene before the ensuing Vidhan Sabha elections.
Prominent among those present were revenue minister Bikram Majithia, MLAs Ravinder Singh Brahmpura, Manjeet Singh Mianwind, HS Sandhu and Virsa Singh Valtoha.