BEGOWAL: The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) received a major boost in the Doaba region on Sunday as party president Sukhbir Singh Badal re-inducted senior Akali leader and former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur into the party.
Badal also appointed her as the party’s constituency in-charge for Bholath and appealed to Akali leaders who had left the SAD to return to the party to strengthen the Panth and work towards removing its “enemies” from Punjab.
Addressing a large gathering in Begowal, Badal welcomed Jagir Kaur’s return along with her entire team. He urged her to take everyone along and appealed to voters to ensure her victory in the forthcoming Assembly elections.
Describing Bholath as a Panthic constituency and a stronghold of the community, Badal said her return was encouraging for the party.
Targeting the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, Badal alleged that Punjab was facing a serious crisis, with drug trafficking and gangster culture reaching alarming levels. He accused AAP leaders and MLAs of providing protection to drug traffickers in exchange for regular payments.
Badal said neither Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal nor Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had shown concern for the welfare of Punjab’s people. He credited former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal with introducing schemes such as the Atta-Dal scheme, Shagun scheme, old-age pension and scholarships for Scheduled Caste students.
He challenged the Congress and AAP to name one significant achievement during their respective tenures in power and promised to restore welfare schemes that had been discontinued or diluted by the present government.
Appealing to voters to defeat the AAP government, Badal said Punjab could not afford to give another chance to either AAP or the Congress. He claimed that an SAD government would eliminate gangsterism from the state within three months.
Speaking to reporters later, Badal said AAP leaders involved in corruption would be held accountable. He also criticised the state government for awarding the contract for buses under the Mukh Mantri Teerth Yatra scheme to a Delhi-based contractor, alleging that condemned buses were being used. He termed it a criminal act.
Addressing the gathering, Jagir Kaur said major development works in Bholath, including the creation of a subdivision and a sewerage project worth ₹72 crore, had been undertaken during SAD rule. She acknowledged making mistakes in the past and said she would now work dedicatedly to ensure the formation of an SAD government under Sukhbir Singh Badal’s leadership.
