Harsimrat Kaur Badal: 'Amarinder-BJP deal to brush aside corruption investigation'

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal slammed former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday over the captain's announcement that his new political outfit can even go with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming Punjab election. Badal alleged that there was a deal between Captain Amarinder Singh and the BJP to brush under the carpet the corruption investigation going on against the Captain and his family members.

"The extent to which Captain Sahab compromised with Bharatiya Janata Party became very clear when cases of black money in Swiss Bank accounts, enforcement directorate and income tax cases (against him) were brushed under the carpet when he became the Chief Minister. Their deal was very clear," said Harsimrat Kaur Badal.

Former Union Minister Badal went on to allege that, "A Chief Minister who had taken the oath for Punjab becomes helpless to an extent that he hands over the farming of Punjab to Modi-Shah and stops agriculture in the state."

Attacking Amarinder Singh's announcement that the tie-up with the BJP is possible only if the ongoing protest by farmer unions against three farm laws is resolved "in farmers' interest" she said, "After the death of 800 farmers, today Captain Sahab says that he will get the matter resolved by BJP." Alleging that Singh used farmers for his own political agenda she said, "When people made you the Chief Minister, Sunil Jakhar said that you directed the farmers to Delhi. It means you used the farmers. Today we can see that to what extent you fulfilled the agenda of BJP."

Punjab is slated to go to the polls early next year and Amarinder Singh resigning months before has added a new dimension to the poll arithmetic in the state. Charanjeet Singh Channi took oath as Chief Minister days after Amarinder Singh stepped down.

(ANI)