Chandigarh: "AAP govt has failed on law and order front"

Chandigarh: Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Saturday alleged the Punjab government has "failed completely" on the law and order front and apprehensions about the AAP not being able to handle a border state have come true.The Union Jal Shakti minister said the BJP had said if the AAP comes to power in Punjab, the situation in the state could get out of control. Shekhawat was addressing a press conference here which saw former deputy commissioner of police (DCP), Jalandhar, Rajinder Singh join the BJP ahead of the May 10 Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll.

The seat fell vacant after the death of Congress leader Santokh Singh Chaudhary in January. A Kabbadi player was shot dead; artists, traders, builders and prominent citizens are getting extortion calls and threats; and drug and gun mafia dominate in Punjab, Shekhawat alleged. "On the law and order front, the Punjab government has failed completely. In Khadoor Sahib, a gurdwara granthi's leg was chopped off by assailants. Can there be anything more barbaric than this? The government should take steps to set the law and order situation right," he said. Asked about the Mann government's assertion that the law and order situation is under control, the Union minister said they may give themselves a certificate "but what matters is what the common people are feeling".

People are living under the shadow of fear, he charged. Shekhawat also attacked the state government over alleged non-fulfilment of its promises. "There is a massive failure on every delivery point. They failed to deliver on promises they made, including giving (Rs 1,000 per month) stipend to women and employment to the youth," he said. Replying to a question, Shekhawat said the BJP has a zero-tolerance policy towards matters pertaining to the country's unity and integrity, and no laxity will be tolerated on this front.

He further said the people of Punjab are looking at the BJP with great hope and people from across the society are joining the party. He said the party will soon declare its candidate for the Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll. Shekhawat said the BJP has been playing the role of Opposition strongly in the Punjab Assembly. "We may have just two seats (in the Punjab Assembly), but the BJP is playing the role of Opposition strongly and raising issues of public interest from the streets to Parliament, and exposing the AAP government's failures," he said. Union Minister Som Prakash, state BJP chief Ashwani Sharma, and party leaders Hans Raj Hans, Jeevan Gupta and Manoranjan Kalia were also present at the press conference.