Jails in Punjab become safe havens for Mafia: BJP

Making a scathing attack on Capt Amarinder Singh-led Congress Government, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday said that jails in Punjab have become safe havens for mafia.

“It is highly unfortunate that Capt Amarinder was handing over clean chit to the mining mafia, which after attacking government officials and even elected representatives, has now attacked the media persons covering the illegal act,” said the BJP national secretary Tarun Chugh.

He said that the Chief Minister, who principally should have stood for the rights and security of media, had failed not only to govern but also to protect the journalists who were performing their duty in the interest of the state.

“In the last 16 months of Capt Amarinder’s rule, various mafia groups have attacked officials of forest and industries department, assaulted MLAs, councillors, cops, industrialists and have now targeted media persons,” he said.

The government has failed to rise to the situation and rein in the mafia even as it was getting bolder and brutal by the day, Chugh said.

Saying that the writ of the drug and mining mafia was running in the state, Chugh said that it was good that Capt Amarinder knows that the drugs which were earlier selling for Rs 1,200 were now priced at Rs 6,000.  “If he has such inputs, he must be knowing the names of the drug dealers too,” he said.

Instead of telling people the increase in rates of drugs, he should reveal the list of drug dealers and act against them, BJP leader demanded while recalling that when Capt Amarinder had sworn to abolish drug mafia from the state holding the sacred ‘Gutka Sahib’ in his hand, he had not told the people that he would be providing them the latest rates of drugs but had vowed to end the menace in four weeks.

“Though we all know, and the Chief Minister has himself said, that it was his last term, he has no business to run the state like he was. Capt Amarinder himself and his government are losing the faith of the people by evading any action against the drug and mining mafia,” he said adding that the Chief Minister should know that people understand the difference between the statements and the action.

“Congress government must do whatever is required to honour the promises it made to the electorate of Punjab or be ready to face the wrath of the people,” Chugh said.