Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday took strong exception to the state Governor summoning top officials to explain the law-and-order situation in the state instead of seeking a direct report from him. Amarinder Singh also said it was unfortunate that the Governor “bowed” to BJP's “antics.”
The chief minister was reacting to Punjab Governor V P Singh Badnore summoning the Punjab chief secretary and police chief to question them on the alleged law-and-order problems in the state, amid "sporadic" incidents of damage to mobile towers, officials said.
Notably, Badnore had on December 30 decided to summon the state’s chief secretary and the director general of police while taking strong note of vandalism of over 1,600 mobile towers by protesting farmers.
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Reacting to Governor Badnore’s summons to the state’s top officials, Singh said the BJP's “propaganda” regarding the alleged collapse of law-and-order situation in the state is nothing more than a “tactic” to divert attention from the ongoing farmers’ protests.
If the Governor nevertheless had any concerns on the law-and-order situation, he should have taken up the matter directly with me as I serve as the custodian of the Home portfolio, the chief minister said.
Alleging that Badnore had “bowed” to the antics of the BJP and terming it as “unfortunate”, the CM said it took just a day for the Governor to react to the state BJP leadership's complaint of purported law-and-order collapse in Punjab. Singh also slammed the state BJP leadership for allegedly adding fuel to the fire, with their “irresponsible” statements, in the already surcharged atmosphere triggered by the “draconian” farm laws.
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He termed it a “vicious game-plan” of the party to “undermine” the peaceful agitation of the farmers by terming a few minor incidents of damage to some mobile towers as a law-and-order problem. “These damaged towers can be, and are being repaired, but what about the lives of the farmers lost in the bitter cold at Delhi borders, where they continue to fight for their rights amid total apathy from the BJP-led government at the Centre?” asked the CM.
He expressed shock alleging that not a single BJP leader had expressed any concern over the deaths of protesting farmers. “The lost lives cannot be recovered,” he said, asking the Punjab BJP leaders to stop “politicising” a peaceful agitation with their “ill-conceived” comments.
Instead of the slandering of the farmers with terms like “Naxalites” and “Khalistanis”, the BJP should press its central leadership to heed the voice of the “Annadaatas” and revoke the “black farm laws” that are “threatening” the livelihood and future of the farming community, Singh said.
“At a time when the very existence of our farmers is at stake, the BJP leaders are busy indulging in petty politics and also dragging the Constitutional office of the Governor into their unsavoury agenda,” he added.
