Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday alleged the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is keen to release Punjab’s river water to Haryana and Rajasthan for electoral gains in these two neighbouring states.

Addressing a public gathering at Kapuri village in Patiala which was at the epicenter of the ‘dharam yudh’ morcha launched by the SAD to stop construction of the SYL canal, Badal said Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was the biggest culprit vis a vis selling off Punjab’s interests on the SYL.

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The SAD leader said the AAP government had deliberately capitulated in the Apex court during hearing on the SYL case by expressing its willingness to construct the SYL canal but for pressure from Opposition parties as well as difficulties in acquiring land for the canal which had been returned back to farmers by the erstwhile SAD government.

“Chief minister Bhagwant Mann took this stand to satisfy his boss Arvind Kejriwal who is keen to release Punjab river waters to Haryana and Rajasthan to win support for his party in the forthcoming elections in the two states,” he said while announcing that the SAD would ‘gherao’ Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s residence on 10 October.

Badal also appealed to Punjabis not to allow any Central team wishing to conduct a survey to facilitate supply of Ravi-Beas water from the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) canal to Haryana to enter the State.

“Be it any direction of the Apex court or even the dispatch of the army by the Prime Minister to facilitate transfer of water to Haryana, we will not let this become a reality”, the SAD leader said adding his party would not allow a single drop of water to go to Haryana come what may.

Badal said the SAD would resolve this issue once and for all when it assumed power in Punjab. “We are committed to terminating all water sharing agreements and stopping the flow of water to Rajasthan,” he said.

Stating that land meant for the canal had been returned back to farmers by former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal in 2016, Mr Badal said “as of now there is no canal. Also Punjab does not have any water to spare. So there is no question of releasing any water to Haryana.”