A day after Punjab Governor Banwari Lal Purohit drew the attention to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of “dereliction” of his “Constitutional duty” for not furnishing the information sought by him (Purohit) through letters, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Wednesday accused the governor of plotting against Punjab and the AAP Government at the behest of the Centre.
Addressing a press conference, AAP Punjab chief spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang said following the instructions of the Centre, the governor is conspiring against the Punjab and the state government and finding an excuse everyday to do politics.
He accused the Opposition parties in Punjab of supporting Purohit in this.
Kang asked whether the governor, who has visited various places in the state including the borders of Punjab, can ever question the Central government as to why it has withheld money due to the state’s rural development fund (RDF) and National Health Mission. “The Center is constantly pushing Punjab, but the governor does not have the courage to say anything against the Narendra Modi government,” he added.
Questioning the governor’s visits to the border areas of Punjab, Kang said in the big border state of Gujarat or states like Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in power, large consignments of drugs are being seized, Dalit girls are being raped and killed every day. “But the governors there do not have the courage to say anything, but the governor of Punjab finds an excuse to do politics every day,” he pointed out.
Lambasting the Opposition parties of the state, the AAP leader asked why these parties, which claim to be pro-Punjab, did not say anything when the governor held a press conference on the issue of Panjab University recently to advocate for Haryana’s share in it.
“In this matter, why didn’t Congress’ Partap Singh Bajwa, Shiromani Akali Dal leaders Sukhbir Singh Badal or Bikram Singh Majithia say anything?,” the AAP leader asked.
Kang alleged that the governor of Punjab and the Opposition parties are together in the conspiracy against the state.
On the suggestion of the Leader of the Opposition (Bajwa), the governor refused to use ‘my government’ and said only ‘government’ in his address on the opening day of the Punjab Assembly session which is “unconstitutional”.
Kang said, “Then despite being the governor of Punjab, he (Purohit) openly advocated for Haryana’s share in Panjab University. But unfortunately, the Opposition parties and their leaders didn’t raise any questions about this serious issue. They claim to be pro-Punjab, but sided with the governor.”
Kang requested the governor to maintain dignity of the constitutional position he holds.