SAD lodges strong protest over short session in business advisory committee meeting

Rozana Spokesman

News, Punjab

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today lambasted the Congress government for running away from

Shiromani Akali Dal

Chandigarh, August 24 - The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today lambasted the Congress government for running away from discussion of burning issues of Punjab by manoeuvering the proceedings of the business advisory committee to shorten the ongoing Vidhan Sabha session to three days.Former minister Sharanjit Singh Dhillon, who is a member of the business advisory committee on behalf of the SAD, said the Congress members of the committee, who are in majority, did not pay heed to his demand to extend the session to discuss all emergent issues plaguing the State and its people.

He said when his demand was not accepted he lodged a strong protest. The Akali leader said even now the business advisory committee should pay heed to demands for discussion on all issues like the government’s failure to implement the Rs 90,000 crore complete loan waiver. He said similarly the government should discuss the reason for spate of suicides of farmers and explain why it had not come out with a rehabilitation plan for the victim families. He said other issues of farmers, including government’s failure to get dues of sugarcane farmers released to them, also needed to be discussed.

“Farmers are even being subjected to Kurki (recovery proceedings) even though it was assured in the Vidhan Sabha that this would not happen”. Mr Dhillon also demanded discussion on the Congress government’s failure to fulfil its ‘ghar ghar naukari’ promise and said Punjabis wanted to know why the promised unemployment allowance of Rs 2,500 per month was not being extended to eligible youth.

He said the assembly should also discuss why government jobs were not being provided to the ordinary youth and why the family of former chief minister Beant Singh had been gifted a government job with his over aged grand son being appointed deputy superintendent of police. Stating that only a ten to fifteen day assembly session could do justice to the voice of the people, the Akali leader said each and every section of society wanted to question the government as to why it had reneged on promises made to them.

He said Dalits were sore with the government because the SC Scholarship scheme had been stopped for a long period. He said Dalit families were also not being paid various social welfare benefits extended to them by five times chief minister S Parkash Singh Badal. Mr Dhillon said he would again demand for an extension of the Vidhan Sabha on Monday. “If this is not done we will register an appropriate protest”, he added.