The Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday appealed to the people of Punjab to give the party-led alliance a clear majority for peace and prosperity in the state which goes to the polls on Sunday.
Union Minister and the party’s Punjab affairs in-charge, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said his party has come with a vision and agenda for the development of Punjab, unlike the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party, which the saffron party claimed, are pursuing a divisive agenda.
Shekhawat, along with the state BJP general secretary, Subhash Sharma, said, the BJP was fighting the Punjab elections as a major partner for the first time while earlier it used to contest only 23 seats. He appealed to the people to give the BJP-led alliance a clear majority for Punjab’s peace and prosperity.
The BJP, which had an alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal earlier, used to fight 23 of the 117 seats while the remaining were contested by the SAD.
The SAD led by Sukhbir Singh Badal, however, broke ties with the saffron party over the farm laws issue in 2020.
The BJP is contesting the February 20 polls in alliance with former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh-led Punjab Lok Congress and Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa-led SAD (Sanyukt).
On the last day of the poll campaign, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also participated in a roadshow taken out by Amarinder Singh in Patiala.
People want to create a ‘Nava Punjab’ and only the BJP-led alliance can bring all-round progress in the state, Rajnath Singh later said.
Shekhawat cautioned against the ”hidden and divisive agenda” of the Congress party. In an official statement, Shekhawat said the state of affairs in the Congress was so anarchic that it even forgot to release its manifesto till the last day ”and it only released it when it was pointed out by the media”. He said there is a ”vertical split” in the Congress with PCC president Navjot Singh Sidhu and Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi pulling in diametrically opposite directions.
The BJP leader also targeted the AAP, referring to allegations levelled by former AAP leader Kumar Vishwas. He also said, not only Kumar Vishwas but other senior colleagues of AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal too had from time to time revealed ”his (Kejriwal’s) agenda to pursue personal ambitions”.
Shekhawat said the Punjabis have always rejected any ”sectarian, divisive and extremist agenda with the spirit of Punjabiyat and they will reject it this time also”. Appealing people to vote for the BJP-led alliance for a clear majority, Shekhawat said while other parties pursued divisive agenda, the BJP believed in peace, progress and social harmony, with ”sabka sath, sabka vikas” (inclusive growth of all).
”You have given chance to the Congress and the Akalis, now give us one chance,” he appealed to Punjabis while clarifying that although the BJP was an ally of the Akalis earlier, being a junior partner, it had only a limited role then.
