The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), on Friday, condemned Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for “passing unsavory comments against farmer unions” and asked him to apologise for the same even as it maintained the AAP government was running away from implementing a written undertaking given to the unions.

In a statement here, former minister Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said the farm unions were only asking the government to notify the demands which had been accepted by it in writing.

He said when the ‘dharna’ outside the chief minister’s residence was lifted last month the government agreed to implement the charter of demands presented by the farm unions in a time bound manner.

“It seems the chief minister wants to now run away from implementing the demands and that is why he has started bad mouthing the farm unions,” Dr Cheema said.

Asking the CM to implement all the demands, the SAD leader said compensation for crop damage as well as death of milch animals due to lumpy skin disease should be released at the earliest.

He said similarly farmers should be given an enhancement in the land acquisition relief and all cases registered against farmers for burning paddy stubble in distress should be cancelled. “Red entries put in revenue records of farmers should also be erased immediately,” Dr Cheema said while advising Mann to act maturely and not spoil the atmosphere of the state with irresponsible statements.

“Defaming others seems to be the hallmark of AAP which earlier led defamatory campaigns against its political opponents and has now decided to go after the farm unions. Law and order is already paralysed. The state can ill afford further unrest due to confrontationist statements of the chief minister. The AAP government should notify the demands of the farm unions instead of trying to defame them”, he added.