Amritsar, Aug 28 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday marked Rakhri Punia at Baba Bakala, a historic town in Amritsar district, by turning the government’s commitment to women into a direct financial assurance, crediting Rs 181.50 crore as three months’ ‘Sanman Rashi’ into the accounts of 5.30 lakh more women under the Mawan-Dheeyan Satkar Yojna, taking the total number of beneficiaries to 70.92 lakh.
While announcing that the government is working on a war footing to bring 1 crore women under the scheme, with Rs 51 crore already paid as incentives to 1.38 lakh Satkar Sakhis and another Rs 25 crore to be given to Anganwadi workers who helped with registrations.
Addressing the gathering, CM Mann said, “Several modern-day ‘masands’ are holding rallies on this occasion to mislead the people on the pretext of religion. These culprits are using religion to fool the people of Punjab, but people would not be swayed away by them. These ‘masands’ are stooping too low by trying to get sympathy from the people by displaying their wounds after the attack.”
He said wise people of the state have ousted these leaders who were living in palatial houses during their heydays of power and had never bothered about the masses. “Those who claimed that they would rule the state for 25 years have been sent to political oblivion by the people, and they are not even able to find 25 members to constitute a committee. The wise and brave people of the state have taught a befitting lesson to such dubious and haughty leaders for their misdeeds.”
Calling out the Akali Dal, CM Mann said, “During their long misrule, the Akalis committed the sin of ‘beadbi’ (sacrilege) of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, shielding the perpetrators of this heinous crime and allowing firing on the innocent people. The Akalis have plundered the state mercilessly, besides bruising the psyche of Punjabis emotionally and patronising several mafias in the state. “Every vote to Akalis will be a mandate in favour of ‘beadbi’. The Akali leadership can never be forgiven, as it was responsible for the genocide of several generations of the state, as the drug trade was patronised by them and bloomed during their long era of misrule.”
Making a scathing attack on the Akali Dal, he said even if the Prime Minister makes a call enquiring the health of Akali leaders, they start dreaming about having an alliance with Delhi to loot Punjab. “It is a fact that the Akali leaders are always bothered about their own interests rather than that of Punjabis or Punjab, whereas AAP is committed only to Punjab.”
He said in order to satiate their hunger for power, the Akali Dal is now begging for an alliance with the BJP, whose hands were drenched with the murder of more than 700 farmers who attained martyrdom during the protest against draconian anti-farmers law. “The Akali-BJP alliance is without any ideology or public welfare but will be solely aimed at grabbing power in the state. People will not get swayed away with the misleading tantrums of these parties and will teach them a befitting lesson in the coming days.”
CM Mann said the BJP can win from any state in the country, but it should never dream of winning from this land of great Guru Sahiban, saints, seers, prophets and martyrs. The people of the state are well aware of the dubious character of the BJP, and they will definitely teach it a lesson.
“Punjabis can never forget how the food growers of the state were humiliated by the BJP during the protest against the draconian farm laws. There is a long saga of BJP’s injustice and step-motherly treatment of the saffron party against the state and its people,” added the Chief Minister.
–IANS
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