Farmers Movement Archive

Not scared of ED, going to courts for 13 years now: Punjab CM Amarinder Singh

CHANDIGARH: Asserting that he was not scared of ED or anyone else, Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh on Friday slammed all the rival politicians for playing politics with the lives of the farmers to further their own interests. In a press statement, Amarinder said he and the entire Congress was solidly with the farmers and the Centre must listen to them. He hit out at all the key opposition players, right from Parkash Singh Badal, Sukhbir and Harsimrat, to Arvind Kejriwal and M L Khattar, for their flip-flops and for making a mockery of the fight of the farmers. “For 13 years, I have been going to courts because of the cases initiated against me by the Badals, I am not bothered about ED. I can go to courts and fight for another 13 years,” he said, reacting to Harsimrat Badal’s charge that he was under ED pressure. “All these Badals are alike, and they are all liars,” he said. Amarinder said in his meeting on Thursday, he had told Union home minister Amit Shah that the amendment Bills passed in Punjab assembly were the solution to breaking the deadlock over the farmers’ issue. “I urged him to get the Bills approved by the President,” he said. Taking on the Akalis over their “double-speak on the farm Laws”, Amarinder said in a live video statement on Facebook that the Badals had publicly done a U-turn on the issue. “I don’t know why Prakash Singh Badal got the Padma Bhushan in the first place,” he said. Noting that Gen Harbaksh Singh had got Padma Vibhushan for winning the 1965 war, Captain Amarinder asked “what war did Prakash Singh Badal fight or what sacrifice did he make for the community.” “Stop politicking on this…these theatrics might have worked 40 years ago but they won’t work now,” he added. “All his life Prakash Singh Badal has been claiming that he represents the interests of the farmers. Then why did his party support the central ordinances after initially opposing them, and then did an about-turn and started publicly criticising the legislations?” said Amarinder. He said as a member of the Union cabinet Harsimrat Kaur Badal had been very much a part of the meeting that passed the farm ordinances. “Is she illiterate that she can’t read,” he asked. Lashing out at Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal for twisting his statement on national security, he said it was clearly made in reference to Pakistan and as home minister of Punjab, it was his duty to apprise the Union home minister of the dangers of the prolonged agitation. “Kejriwal nu jhooth bolan di aadat hai, aur Khattar nu kuttan di,” (Kejriwal is in the habit of lying and Khattar is in the habit of thrashing), said Amarinder, taking on both, his Haryana and Delhi counterparts. Even old farmers were not spared by the Khattar government, he said. Describing Kejriwal as a slimy fellow who was in the habit of lying, Capt Amarinder asked the Delhi chief minister to first explain why his government had notified one of the central farm laws. “When other opposition-ruled states, including Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, have passed amendment bills to counter the central laws, why did he not call a session of the Delhi assembly too,” the CM asked. “Does Kejriwal not have villages around Delhi?” he added.

The Times of India

2020-12-05

Chandigarh