Chandigarh: BJP today asked Congress and Manpreet Singh Badal, who merged his outfit, Peoples Party of Punjab, with Congress, to clear their stand on subsidies as he had parted ways with Akali Dal over the issue.
BJP National Secretary Tarun Chugh said that as Manpreet, the estranged nephew of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, had parted ways on the issue of discontinuation of subsidies to farmers, traders and industrialists, both he and Congress need to spell out their thoughts on it.
“Has Congress changed its stand regarding subsidies to farmers and other classes in the state or has Manpreet forgotten his stand and policy just for his political survival,” Chugh asked.
The BJP leader said it was the height of frustration and opportunism that Manpreet took a decision to join Congress which he had been abusing from the start of his political career.
Dubbing Manpreet as an “expired injection”, Chugh said he has established himself as a leader rejected by not only the people of the state but also by the leaders of the party he floated.
He said the defeats Manpreet suffered in 2012 Assembly elections and 2014 Parliamentary elections made him take a U-turn which he could not get approved from the few leaders left under his command and a small group of followers.
Chugh said that Manpreet Badal will have to tell people how and why he opted to join a party he had been terming “enemy of Punjab”.
Ridiculing the merger, Chugh said the question being asked in political circles now is who out of Congress or PPP was trying to save whom. He said one is a sinking ship and the other was a boat which finally sank today.
Chugh reminded Manpreet of the oath he took at Khatkar Kalan wherein he had pledged to fight Congress tooth and nail to protect the interests of Punjab.
Chugh said, “It was not long ago when you misled the people of Punjab in the name of Bhagat Singh but have now joined hands with the proven corrupt and scandalous party. It tells a lot about you, your character, political ideology, if any, and also goes on to prove that you were raising the bogey of honesty and patriotism just for political gains.