Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Cheema on Thursday hit out at opposition parties, accusing them of playing politics over the issue of gangster culture and drug menace in the state. He said it was the previous governments that allowed these problems to thrive.
“All leaders, including those of the BJP, Congress and SAD, are in fact working in favour of drug mafia and even openly supporting gangsters,” Cheema alleged.
“We are only cleaning the rot that has been gifted to us by the previous governments. I assure you that we will eliminate the drug mafia in Punjab,” he further added.
Taking a swipe at the BJP, Cheema asked, “Instead of making a noise in public, why does the party not approach Home Minister Amit Shah and have gangster Lawrence Bishnoi shifted to a Punjab jail? Many gangsters are in jails in other states.”
He also accused the Congress of shielding gangsters like Mukhtar Ansari, who, he said, was given a comfortable stay in Punjab jails. He is known to have promoted an ‘action city’ with anti-social elements even threatening and killing people.
Alleging collusion across party lines, the AAP leader added, “Police records openly show the support of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders.”
“Infact, the entire Opposition cannot deny its lackadaisical approach to have been the reason for the drug mafia to have prospered over the past decades. In one example, Leader of Opposition Partap Bajwa has taken a U-turn in his stand. We have the video of him saying ‘we will drag SAD president Sukhbir Badal, senior leaders Majithia and Tota Singh to state roads, tying them behind a vehicle. Why is he protecting them now? Actually, they are all the root cause of the menace that we witness today,” Cheema further said.
Responding to criticism over alleged fake encounters, Cheema maintained that Punjab Police is actively investigating and will soon bring the truth to light. “Our police is on the job and the reality will be out in the open soon, silencing all critics,” he concluded.
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