Akali Dal and Congress emptied the state treasury, while AAP government increased revenue in three years and spent it on people: Harpal Singh Cheema

Tarn Taran(The Uttam Hindu): Punjab’s Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema today launched a sharp attack on opposition parties, saying that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government is doing politics of development, whereas traditional parties like the Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal have nothing to show the people and are therefore resorting to divisive and negative politics.

In a statement, Harpal Singh Cheema said that previous governments always cried that the treasury was empty because their intentions were corrupt. “They themselves were thieves, which is why neither GST collection increased nor tax revenue. The AAP government, in just three years, has collected more revenue than both Congress and Akali governments did in their five-year terms and has spent that money on the people,” said Cheema. He questioned, “If the treasury was really empty, then from where did we provide 56,000 government jobs?”

Listing the achievements of the AAP government, Cheema said that the Goindwal Sahib Thermal Plant, which was sold to private companies by the Akali-BJP government, was repurchased by the AAP government and dedicated back to the people of Punjab.

Targeting the Congress, the Finance Minister said that Punjab is the land of Gurus and saints who spread the message of unity and equality beyond caste and religion. “But the Congress party is trying to break this harmony by using unconstitutional language and making objectionable remarks, which the people of Punjab will never tolerate,” he said.

Cheema further said that the history of the Congress is full of instances of promoting hooliganism and gangsterism. Citing the example of Mukhtar Ansari, he said that the UP gangster was kept in Ropar jail and protected under the Congress rule. Similarly, under the Akali-Congress regimes, the Majha region became infamous for the flood of drugs. But the AAP government has created an Anti-Gangster Task Force, arrested gangsters, and launched a massive war against drugs.

Harpal Singh Cheema said that today, the people of Tarn Taran want only development. “People can clearly see who is providing jobs, quality education, healthcare, and free electricity to their families.” He appealed to the people to ensure a massive victory for Aam Aadmi Party candidate Harmeet Singh Sandhu in the by-election to continue this chain of development.