हिंदी
(Prof Chandumajra and Dr Cheema demand CM call an All Party meeting and spell out AAP govt’s stand on SYL)
(Also ask AAP mlas to state their stand on SYL)
Chandigarh, September 9 – The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today castigated chief minister Bhagwant Mann for deliberately not fielding any senior lawyer to represent Punjab’s case in the Supreme Court on the SYL canal issue to facilitate Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Convener Arvind Kejriwal’s stated goal to give way Punjab’s waters to Haryana and Delhi.
Addressing a press conference here, senior SAD leaders Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra and Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said “it is for the first time ever since the SYL case is being heard in the apex court that the Punjab government did not field a single senior lawyer for the case. Even the State Advocate General was not pressed into service. It is clear that this was done in league with the party’s high command in Delhi to achieve a one sided decision against Punjab”
Asking Bhagwant Mann to tell Punjabis why he was taking one anti-Punjab stance after another on the orders of Arvind Kejriwal, the SAD leaders said “it is shocking that the Punjab government did not even inform the Supreme Court about Punjab’s firm stand that it had an inalienable right over its river waters as per the Riparian law and that this issue was not negotiable”. The leaders said instead of doing this, the Punjab government gave its acquiescence to hold talks with its Haryana counterpart “which amounts to a betrayal of the State’s stand on this vital issue which concerns the future of its farmers and its economy”.
Prof Chandumajra also demanded that the chief minister call an All Party meeting to disclose AAP’s stand on this crucial issue to Punjabis. “Bhagwant Mann’s visit to Haryana, his subservience to Kejriwal and campaign along with AAP MP Sushil Gupta who has guaranteed that SYL water will flow into Haryana has sent a wrong signal to Punjabis that he is getting ready to backstab the State. In case the chief minister does not spell out his clear stand soon the SAD will organize Punjabis through a Jago Punjab movement to force the government to listen to the sentiments of the people of the State”.
Dr Daljit Cheema said while the chief minister was getting ready for a sellout, AAP legislators should also clear their stand on this vital issue. He said Punjabis had given an overwhelming majority to AAP and elected 92 legislators to office. “These legislators are answerable to the people and they should not behave like servants of AAP and Bhagwant Mann but should voice the sentiments of Punjabis”.
The leaders also warned the chief minister not to repeat history and create unrest in the State. They said former chief minister Darbara Singh’s sellout to Indira Gandhi had set the stage for creation of the SYL and subsequent era of unrest. “Now it seems Bhagwant Mann is also under a similar pressure from Arvind Kejriwal”.
The leaders also reiterated the stand of SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal that the SAD would not allow one drop of water to go out from the State. They said the SYL canal issue had been closed by former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal who had passed a bill in 2016 to hand over land on which the canal was constructed back to farmers free of cost. “Now there is no canal per se and no water to give away”, they added.
