‘CONG GOVT HAS NOTHING TO SHOW, MERELY RECOGNISED WORK OF SADBJP REGIME’

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Each and every achievement listed out in the governor’s address was authored by the previous SADBJP government led by Parkash Singh Badal. SUKHBIR S BADAL, SAD president

CHANDIGARH: With his tongue firmly in his cheek, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president and dormer deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Wednesday said it was the first time in the history of Punjab that an incumbent government has “recognised the work of its predecessor (SAD-BJP) as has been done by the Congress government in the governor’s address”. The SAD-BJP was in power for 10 years before March last year.

“Each and every achievement listed out in the governor’s address was authored by the previous SAD-BJP government led by Parkash Singh Badal,” Sukhbir said while talking to reporters at the press gallery in the Vidhan Sabha. “I am thankful to the chief minister (Capt Amariner Singh) because this year’s governor’s address is a forceful endorsement of the policies, programmes, decisions and achievements of the SADBJP government during the 10 years from 2007-17,” he added.

Asking the Congress government to list even one achievement listed in the document which had not been implemented by the Badal regime, he said the address seemed to have got two things “wrong”: the dates and the name of the chief minister, “which should have been Parkash Singh Badal and not Capt Amarinder Singh”.

Sukhbir also castigated the address for lacking vision as “it did not list even one action plan for the future”.

“The address has virtually abdicated Punjab’s claim on important issues, including justice for the 1984 (riots’) victims and transfer of Chandigarh and Punjabi-speaking areas by omitting their reference,” he added.

He said the Congress government is trying to claim credit for successful dealing of inter-state river water disputes when “it is a fact” that the previous assembly passed an act returning the land acquired for Sutlej-yamuna Link (SYL) canal to farmers. He said the Shahpur Kandi project too is being touted as a Congress achievement when it was started by the SAD-BJP government. “The Congress government has done nothing on the irrigation front, but has listed this in the address despite the fact that the SAD-BJP government spent Rs 3,070 crore on this head during its tenure.”