Chandigarh: Day after Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann met Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking for Rs 1 lakh crore special package for the development of the state, the opposition on Friday took a dig at the chief minister saying he was deviating from the poll promise of generating revenue within the state.
Mann on his maiden meeting with PM Modi in Delhi on Thursday requested him to announce Rs 1 lakh crore package for Punjab in two years to improve the financial condition of the state. Mann said that the economic condition of Punjab is “precarious” and he needed the cooperation of the Centre to maintain national security in the state. This was his first meeting with PM Modi since becoming Punjab Chief Minister.
Meanwhile, Opposition parties are cornering the CM and Aam Aadmi Party convener Arvind Kejriwal over their pre-poll promises. At the same time, they are sharing Arvind Kejriwal's statement in which he had said, "will get the money for free promises and improvement in Punjab's condition”. BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa said that Mann had promised: “big things in Punjab before the elections”.
“The promises were made to fool people. Bhagwant Mann used to say that the corruption that has been going on in the state till now will end. He had said he will collect money from it (corruption) and invest it in the development of the state,” Sirsa said. “Now that the government has been formed and the promises made, they are demanding money from the Prime Minister of the country. Any government can make tall promises to win the elections and later demand money from the central government,” he added.