Lashing out at the Akalis for indulging in street politics at the cost of people’s welfare, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday called upon all political parties to resolve not to block highways but to find alternative ways to protest.
Capt Amarinder said, a day after he tweeted his anger at the way the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) led by its president Sukhbir Badal had laid a siege of the National Highway with total disregard for the hardships caused to the people, said that any form of protest that causes inconvenience to citizens cannot be termed ‘democratic’ and blocking the National Highway was a crime under the law.
He went on to warn that nobody would be allowed to break the law in Punjab and anyone doing so would have to face the consequences. “Our government would not allow a law and order breakdown in the state, nor would it permit anyone to hold the common people to ransom,” he added.
Lakhs of people suffered as a result of the Akali dharnas, which were nothing but sheer theatrics, said Capt Amarinder, adding that such acts are a sign of petty minds, which do not see beyond short-term personal gains.
Capt Amarinder said that military convoys could not move and essential supplies could not reach the soldiers, standing guard at the borders, in time, due to this ill-thought and abhorrent decision of the Akalis to sit on dharnas over a complete non-issue.
The National Highways are of strategic military importance, besides being lifelines for the civilians, and nothing can justify blocking these vital links, he added.
The Akalis did not even take into cognizance the problems blocking the highway would cause to the pilgrims visiting the Golden Temple – the world’s most visited religious site – even though they claim to be the guardians of the Sikh religion, the Chief Minister pointed out.
Had the Akalis really had a genuine grouse on the issue of filing nomination papers for the MC elections, they would have jumped at the opportunity given by the state election commission in the form of an extra day to submit the same, the Chief Minister added. The fact that not a single nominee came out to file their papers on the additional day completely nailed Sukhbir’s lie in this regard, he pointed out.
Even if they had a genuine concern, blocking highways was the last thing the Akalis should have resorted to, as a means of protest, Capt Amarinder said. It was a desperate act, triggered by the fact that the Akalis had seen their defeat written plainly on the wall, he said, adding that the party had failed to show any political recovery since their ignominious defeat in the assembly elections.
Rejecting the Akalis’ claims of mobilizing the masses as completely false, the Chief Minister said that they were indulging in street politics now out of sheer desperation, hoping it would help them recover some of the lost political ground.
They were going the AAP way with their ‘dramas’, without realizing that they would meet the same fate as the party of Arvind Kejriwal, who had also slept on roads as party of his political game-plan.
The fact is that the Akalis are completely down and out, with no hope for their revival in the near term, said Capt Amarinder, adding that no political party can survive without putting the interests of the people above their own political interests.