Chandigarh: The opposition parties in Punjab have targeted the AAP government over allegedly deteriorating law and order situation in the state in the wake of some high profile murders and recent threat to singer Babbu Maan. Both the Congress and the BJP are sharpening their attack. On his part, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring has targeted both the state as well as the central governments.
Warring said the “manner in which Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders and ministers are comparing Punjab with other states in terms of crime is surprising”. “People are making such comparisons to hide their failures,” he said. He asked why the AAP led state government does not accept the existing situation in Punjab being bad. He urged the government to take note of the threats to singer Babu Mann.
BJP leader Rajkumar Verka too expressed concern over the law and order situation and slammed the Punjab government for calling the crimes as “small incidents”. Should Sidhu Musewala's murder be called a small incident? Were the deaths of three international players in the state small incidents?” he asked.
He also criticised the state government for taking exception to Union Home Minister Amit Shah's statement over the law and order situation in the state. “He (Shah) is not defaming Punjab but it is quite evident from the ground situation that the condition of the state is bad. Talk to anyone in Punjab, he will tell you the situation here that there is an atmosphere of fear in Punjab today,” Verka said.
Also read: Punjab: Body stuffed inside a suitcase found at railway station, accused arrested
Union Minister Gajendra Shekhawat also raised questions on the issue, saying that today the people of Punjab “are feeling cheated”. “The Aam Aadmi Party government has not fulfilled all the promises it made. While on the one hand Punjab has been thrown into debt, on the other hand the state has been left in the hands of mafia and gangsters. The common citizen of Punjab is scared,” Shekhawat said.
“The way the terror struck by gangsters has increased in Punjab and the way threats of extortion are being made openly, it seems they have been given a free hand. The murders are being carried out in an organized manner, from Sidhu Moosewala to Kabaddi players" he added.
Arshdeep Keller, spokesperson of Akali Dal, said that the situation in Punjab today is a matter of concern for everyone. He said that the state government has failed to provide security to the people. Meanwhile, Mohali SP Dr. Sandeep Garg while reacting to the threat received by Punjabi singer Babbu Maan, said they are prepared to protect the people and those who are receiving threats are also being given security.
Pertinently, police on Wednesday night arrested a man in connection with the murder of a man whose body was found stuffed inside a suitcase at Punjab's Jalandhar railway station on Tuesday morning. Earlier, on November 10, a Dera Sacha Sauda follower, who was an accused in a 2015 sacrilege incident, was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Punjab's Faridkot district.
The murder came six days after Shiv Sena leader Sudhir Suri was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Punjab's Amritsar. The incident occurred outside a temple in the city, where Suri, alongside some other leaders, was holding a protest.
