Raj Sadosh/Abohar.
Bharatiya Janata Party former state president Sunil Jakhar has written to the Governor of Punjab, urging him to recommend to the Election Commission that the Model Code of Conduct be enforced in the state at the earliest. Citing Punjab’s deteriorating law-and-order situation, which he said the Bhagwant Mann government had itself now acknowledged, Jakhar said this was necessary to ensure that the forthcoming Assembly elections were peaceful and fair and that people could exercise their right to vote without fear. He disclosed this at a press conference here
He also said the party would soon approach the Election Commission of India to demand early enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct. He alleged that if the AAP government remained in power any longer, it would worsen the situation to such an extent that holding peaceful and impartial elections in an atmosphere free from fear would become impossible.
Jakhar said the party was also exploring legal options to seek the externment of Manish Sisodia and Arvind Kejriwal from Punjab on the basis of Sisodia’s inflammatory statements that, he alleged, were disturbing the state’s atmosphere. This would prevent them from visiting Punjab and spreading further poison, he said. He alleged that AAP was pushing Punjab into the flames of unrest as part of a deliberate conspiracy.
He said an anti-drug marathon had been held annually in Abohar for several years, with thousands of young people participating in the campaign against drugs. This year, however, the government had cancelled permission for the marathon in writing, stating that the atmosphere was unfavourable and that the event could not be held because of the poor law-and-order situation.
Jakhar said law and order in Punjab had indeed deteriorated to an extremely alarming level and that no one in the state was safe. While drugs were claiming young lives, he alleged, the terror unleashed by the drug mafia had grown to such an extent that sincere voices speaking out against drugs were being silenced with bullets.
He said people were being killed openly across Punjab—from the holy city of Amritsar to Tarn Taran, Khemkaran, Gurdaspur, Sri Hargobindpur, Mansa, Abohar, Sangrur and Ludhiana—in virtually every district and town. Criticising the government’s role, he alleged that police were even forcibly taking away the bodies of children who had died due to drugs. Anyone who protested against drugs or expressed their anguish before the government, he said, was either subjected to police repression or driven to suicide.
He alleged that, under this strategy, the government had appointed pliant officers, while criminals and gangsters were either being inducted into the party or provided protection. He further alleged that the Chief Minister’s Office had itself become a hub of corruption and that Punjab was suffering the consequences of this policy.
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